Cause 4 Death
by Katlana Child
Summary: A fantasy that no one thought would happen; the zombie apocalypse. Natara joins the rag-tag team Mal, Ken, and Kai in order to flee the mobs of zombies and hopefully find the original seven Carriers in order to survive. Before Maskmaker Case
1. Chapter 1

**I was going to write more of Fable of Death, but I am stuck in serious Writers Block mode for that story.**

**Okay, I want to thank everyone who reviewed the final chapter of Minion. Due to popular request, the sequel will be out very soon. It'll most likely be the next story I will put up. Also, I only expected maybe three reviews. Nope! I got seven. Which I will reply to by PM. And if you're a guest, just know that I am grateful that you got the chance to read my story. :)**

**So, this is that zombie apocalyptic story I was talking about. I need to say, since I am not putting this as a crossover for certain reasons, that the original 7 survivors who will appear in future chapters are not my characters. Neither is the plot line. The original 7 survivors plus another survivor belong to Valve. The game is called Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 if you want to check it out. It's been a couple years since the last release of the game, so you can get it for about $20 or less. That's about the price I got both of them.**

**Left 4 Dead is a post-apocalyptic game. You play as one of four survivors and you must go through location after location (Pennsylvania in L4D 1, New Orleans in L4D 2 ) in order to get rescued by CEDA, a government based company. The zombie virus, also known as the Infection, can spread through get a cut by an infected person, or getting bitten. Changing into the actual zombie can take up to 5 minutes or days.**

**This story is set before the whole Maskmaker Incident and before Natara shot Shawn. Throughout the story, certain kinds of zombies will appear. They include Smokers, Hunters, Boomers, Witches, Wandering Witches, Spitters, Jockeys, and Chargers, possibly including Valve's original idea of a psychotic zombie labeled a Screamer, and my creation of a zombie labeled the Clawer. **

**This story is told by Natara's P.O.V and when it isn't, it's just Third Person.**

**This is just the introduction, so tell me what you think. Be honest! If you don't think it's something you're interested in, tell me.**

**Thank you for reading and I hope you like it!**

* * *

_My name is Natara Williams and I am a Carrier._

The Zombie Apocalypse. Some would agree that it's complete nonsense. Others would beg to differ and express their opinions on the matter. Being of intense intellect, I choose to abandon the thought.

Of course, that was a mistake to begin with.

I was fighting alongside three complete strangers who dedicated their lives to mine. It might have been the fact that I was newly engaged, or that I was the only girl on the ragtag team. However, the men never failed to jump in front of a potential threat, shielding me from harm.

I used to be an FBI Profiler. I had the life I wanted; I was about to marry my long term boyfriend, Shawn Mallory, and I was starting to get on better terms with my parents.

All of this changed when the apocalypse was announced.

Three weeks after the first Infection-that's what they're calling it- Word got loose that where I was currently stationed, Miami Florida, that the virus had broken out. A short news broadcast revealed that there were at least eight known survivors who were recruiting others and fighting their way across the streets, making their way to the west. Unfortunately, they skipped Florida.

My family had decided to take a trip to India to meet with family and discuss the whole situation. I was invited to tag along, but I didn't want Shawn to stay and have to battle without me.

A week before I arrived in San Francisco, Shawn took me out to dinner, despite the warnings. There, he proposed to me. Excited and thrilled, I accepted, completely ignoring a new customer that had strolled in. We were in the middle of a hug when a piercing scream rang out and a sharp tear whipped through the room. A young girl lay limp at some man's feet. His mouth was covered in her blood, and his skin was a sickly green. He shrieked out in rage and began his rampage.

Shawn, who pushed me aside, pulled out his firearm and began shooting at the insane man.

There's one thing about a zombie that I thought wasn't possible; they're incredibly fast.

The infected man tackled Shawn to the ground, where they wrestled. I heard Shawn cry out as the zombie's nails grazed his cheek. Shawn was finally able to shoot the thing off before nursing his wound. The restaurant was in panic as people fled into the empty streets, where they met even more bood-thirsty beasts.

I ran over to aid Shawn, but he waved me off. "No," he shouted. "Don't come close."

"Shawn," I begged.

"Natara...I don't want you to become infected. Go, get out of Miami while you still can!"

"Shawn!"

"Go!"

I couldn't argue with him. I gave him a sad nod and rushed out of the restaurant. I un-holstered my own pistol and made my way to the car.

I decided to head to San Francisco right then and there. I doubted that the infection had reached there. I was wrong...Very wrong.

My first impression of San Francisco was, 'This place is a ghost-town. Where is everyone?'

Houses were boarded up and signs were plastered everywhere with CEDA instructions. CEDA was the company handling this whole fiasco.

I found myself a hotel and checked in quickly. I had to go through a cleaning process that I much rather not describe. I locked myself in my temporary room and cried for the first time since Shawn was attacked. Sure, I had cried on the car ride, but I had finally let everything out. I texted Shawn until my battery died. He responded for the first two days, telling me that the cut left by the zombie was not getting better. He also reported that he was one of the few humans left in Miami and that he knew it wouldn't last that long. The last text he sent me read,

"I can feel it coming, Nat. I'm going to be one of them. Please, please know that I love you with all of my heart. And as a last request, please keep the ring on. I love you, Natara Williams."

And that was the last I heard of him.

I spent a week in isolation, ordering room service and watching news reports.

More and more of San Francisco was going under siege of this horrific virus and soon, the hotel went out of business and I was trapped.

From time to time, I would peek out the window and watch zombie brawls and survivors fight them off. I kept my lights off at all times, because I heard soft moans outside the hallway, signifying the horrible result of zombies.

My life really sucked at this point and I didn't care whether I lived or died. It got to the stage where I just sat, curled in a ball, waiting anxiously for the infection to hit.

It never did.

Even when I exposed myself to the dirty air outside or turned my lights on, nothing bothered me. Nothing happened.

Until two nights ago.

I was weak, starving, surviving only off the tap water the bathroom sink provided. I watched the television display another news broadcast about the original eight survivors and how only seven remained. They went through the normal safety protocol and blackness. I was surprised that the news castors managed to survive this long.

Around noon, I walked around the hotel, fiddling with my gun. I unlocked my door earlier that week and left my window open. Zombies still resided on the streets below, but no longer in the hotel. I slowly opened the door and looked down the hallway. My stomach lurched. Blood was splattered across the wall and severed body parts were scattered everywhere. One thing I had learned about these zombies; they were violent and would kill anything that crossed their way or looked at them funny, even if it was their own kind. I was about to close the door when I heard the elevator at the end of the hall chime.

Out stepped three men, two having a strong build, and one being lanky. They held guns in their hands and all sorts of equipment was placed in different areas. These guys would soon be my saviors.

"Kai," one commanded. He had brown hair that was messy from days of unrest. Piercing blue eyes scanned the bloody halls, skipping over me. He only wore a white dress shirt that had blood splatters almost everywhere. He looked like he could be a lawyer with his fancy attire. "You check all of the rooms on the right side and I'll check the left."

"Aye, aye Captain!" the lanky man said, saluting the blue-eyed man. His hair was longer than most men would have it. Small glasses were perched on his nose, shielding his brown eyes. He wore a torn Hawaiian shirt with khaki pants. He looked like your typical nerd.

"Whatever you say, Fallon," the other strong built man said, smiling slightly. His skin was darker than the others, and he looked a lot tougher too. He was bald, but had a dark goatee. He was wearing a torn, long-sleeved, black, button-up shirt and some dark jeans.

The men went on searching, until they reached my room. By now, I was grabbing all of my supplies and getting ready to head out. If these guys survived this long, they were definitely a team to be with.

The nerd was the one who found me.

"Whoa!" he called, "Look! It's a chick!"

I turned around at this sudden call, and jumped when the rest of the men joined him. The blue-eyed leader smiled when he saw me. Unlike them, I was showered and nicely dressed.

"You don't look infected," the blue-eyed leader said. "In fact...You look perfectly fine...And clean!"

"How long have you been on the streets, kid?" the dark skinned man asked. He examined me as he asked his question.

"Do you have a boyfriend?" the lanky man asked, smiling like a madman.

"Um..." I began. "A few weeks, and I am...Was engaged."

"Zombie?" the lanky man asked and I nodded. "Bummer. Well, if you ever need some help finding love again, Kai Kalaba is the name you need to know. I'm here for you, Baby."

The leader slapped Kai upside the head and I smiled slightly. He turned to me and shook his head. "Sorry. We found him lying in a dumpster and we're almost positive he's been dropped on his head...A lot, when he was a baby."

"That's fine," I said and held out my hand to the leader. "My name is Natara. And you?"

"Mal," the leader said, gripping my hand. "Mal Fallon. And this is my friend, Ken Greene."

"Nice to meet you," Ken said, also shaking my hand. "And I'm not just saying that to be nice. It's been awhile since we've been among the living."

"Do you guys all know each other?" I asked and Mal shook his head.

"Ken and I do, but like I said, we just found Kai. Ken and I used to work at the San Francisco Police Department."

"Funny," Kai began, "I sent an application there months ago and they still haven't responded."

"Oh really?" Ken asked, rolling his eyes. "I wonder why." He shook his head and nodded towards me. "You have a job, Ms. Williams?"

"Actually," I said, "I was an FBI Profiler. My boyfriend also worked at the FBI...Until the apocalypse of course."

"We're sorry about that," Mal said, "I bet he was a great man."

I nodded. "Yeah...Great..."

"Anyway," Ken began, "I know we just met you and all...But would you like to join us?"

"Dude, she already packed her bags," Kai said. "Heh, she doesn't know anything about zombie fighting, does she?"

"What do I not know?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, for starters," Mal began, "you have to give up everything. The only things you'll be needed from here on out is a gun, some Pain Pills, a First-Aid Kit, and either a pipe bomb or a Molotov. Clothes don't matter...Make-up does not matter...Phones...Well, phones are alright. Just make sure you don't use them until you get into a Safe House."

"What's a Safe-House?" I asked and Ken chuckled.

"You have a lot to learn, my friend."

And this is how I started to fight zombies.


	2. Chapter 2

**Happy Cause of Death Monday!**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**Yes! Kai's weirdness is adorable. :D And I'm glad you're excited about the sequel! It's going to be awesome! :D Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-But I Have Promises To Keep**  
**Hello! And zombies are pretty cool! :) And yes, I've heard about them. Are they both games? If so, I'm all up for new games to try. :D Or TV shows. Those work too. :D Thanks for reading and reviewing!**

**-mozzi-girl (Molleh!)**  
**Aww! Thank you! :D Glad you're liking it already! :D And I've seen a little bit of I Am Legend. I don't blame you. There is some nasty stuff out there that I wouldn't even watch. Video game wise, if it's rated M for only violence, cursing, and horror, I'm totally fine with because you can convince yourself that it isn't real. I'm a little like that with movies, but it's harder. :) Thanks for reviewing and reading! It means a lot to me!**

**-maltararox21**  
**Haha! Thank you so much! :D I am glad that you are loving this! :D And it's only the first chapter...Not really...It's only the introduction! :D And as for Maltara...Yeah, I guess you can expect some. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**So, just to update a little about this story; I will be switching off from Natara's P.o.v to Third person quite a lot. **

**Also, the dates at the beginning of the chapter will disappear soon. They are just there to clarify when things are going on. I didn't put a year down because I couldn't decide if I wanted it to be 2011 or 2013.**

**That's about it! Thank you for reading! I really do appreciate it. (And I will work on Fable of Death soon! I just need to get over the Writer's Block!)**

**Ciao!**

* * *

_March 8th_

"Fire in the hole!" Kai shouted as he threw a metallic object in the air. A bright light flashed and a mob of infected people ran towards it. Mal had informed me that zombies were attracted to anything that flashed and made a loud noise. So basically, if you set off a car alarm...You were screwed.

Ken shot down another line of zombies that didn't go for the Pipe Bomb. "How are you holding, Natara?" he called over the sound of gunfire.

"Pretty good," I replied. "And you?"

"Could be doing better."

It was my first morning out of the hotel. To be completely honest, I felt insane relief. Though there was a better chance of me dying brutally out in the open than in my safe combine, I much rather be out, shooting down mobs of sick, infected zombies.

After this mob disappeared, Mal started moving ahead. He was always a little mysterious and silent. Ken had explained to me that Mal used to be happy and cracking jokes every chance he got. However, the apocalypse had taken away the only thing he loved; his wife. In a way, I could empathize. I thought about approaching him later tonight and telling him about it. Maybe we could be friends.

"There's a Safe-House nearby," he called over his shoulder. "The last one that we'll see in San Francisco."

"We're getting out of the city?" Kai asked.

"Yeah, we never really decided on where we're going," Ken informed.

"We're going to there," Mal said and pointed across the horizon. I frowned because I couldn't see anything.

"Where's _there_?" I asked and Kai gasped.

"We're going to Alcatraz?! Okay, this is officially the best day of my life!"

"Why Alcatraz?" I asked, catching up to Mal. He shrugged.

"According to most news reports that I have seen; Zombies can't swim," he answered. "And Alcatraz is in the middle of the ocean."

"Not really," Kai spoke up. "It is more to the side of the Pacific Ocean. If you want the middle of the ocean, Hawaii would be your best shot!"

Mal sent a glare towards Kai and resumed talking to me. "If we can get to Alcatraz without getting killed, we could possibly be safe. CEDA is supposedly sending 'copters to each body of land surrounded by water. So far, only one vehicle has been torn down."

"We got a pretty good chance at survival," Ken commented. "But then again...How are we going to get to the island without a boat."

"We'll think of something soon enough," Mal sighed and moved a little faster. "Come on, guys. It'll be nightfall in under six hours and we still have a lot of land to cover before we reach the final Safe-House."

I fell back into step with Ken and he shrugged. "Nearby my butt," he commented. "So Natara, where were you stationed before?"

"Well, I am originally from Quantico, but my boyfriend and I were moved down to Miami."

"How ironic," Ken mumbled under his breath. "You two were close?"

"We had our years. How about you and Mal? What happened to cause you two to leave the SFPD?"

Ken sighed. "Everyone in our precinct turned on us; even the forensic guys. You would think they would be prepared for something like this."

"Did you...You know...Kill them?" I asked cautiously, not knowing if Ken had any personal relationships with his coworkers.

"Of course not!" he exclaimed. "Though sometimes Bartaugh gets on my nerves, I would never kill anyone there. They're like my family."

"What did you do with them?"

Ken sighed and shook head. "Mal and I had to wrestle each one into a separate room. Some of our officers had already taken each other down, but most of them are in their own interrogation room, bathroom, or lab. Our captain, of course, is in her office. We're hoping that when they invent the cure, we can save them."

I nodded slowly and he turned the question back to me. "What about your boyfriend? Did you off him?"

I looked down at my hand. The ring still glittered in the late midday sunlight. "No..."

He saw how difficult the subject was for me, so he stopped with the questions. "Well Natara, we got a long day ahead of us. I hope you're ready for some intense target practice."


	3. Chapter 3

**It's short, and I apologize.**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**Aw, thank you! I'm glad you liked Minion so much. :) I am currently working on the sequel and I do have an idea for most of it. :) Actually, I do like Sandra, but cheating on Mal was just downright wrong and horrible. But you know, things happen for a reason. :) And she is mentioned in later chapters; the next to be specific. Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-mozzi-girl (Beast!)**  
**Yeah, unfortunately, that is one of the side-effects of the apocalypse; losing their close friends. Thank you for liking the story! More action and more zombies will get involved! :D And yes, I totally agree. The scariest movie that I watched was probably When a Stranger Calls or Gothika. They aren't as bad as some of the nasty stuff, thank goodness. And my friends and I have a scary movie night every Friday the 13th, and they always bring the R-rated scary movies and it's really hard toughening it out and then walking home every night. Add playing Cause of Death to that mess and you're a paranoid psycho. Haha! I love this game. Anyway, thank you for reading and reviewing! It really does mean a lot, coming from a Beast like you!**

**-But I Have Promises To Keep**  
**Ooh! Looks like I know what I'm getting for Christmas this year! :D Those games sound awesome! :D Thank you for telling me about them and thank you for reading and reviewing! It means a lot! :D**

**-BreezyFan**  
**Thank you! And really? That is awesome. Really, all zombie apocalypse games look alike. First-person shooters, that's all it really is. But I love them! :D Thank you for liking the story, it does mean a lot! And thank you for reading and reviewing. :D**

**Thank you for reading, everyone!**

**So, I just want to discuss a little topic that does relate to Cause of Death.**

**First of all, who played this weeks Now Airing episode? I like how it was a little break from choosing the answers. Also, I personally enjoyed the men's story more than the girls and Oscar probably got like, ten times cooler during that bar fight. But am I the only one who thinks that Mal is truly sincere when he said that Natara was in good hands with Oscar. To me, it sounded like he was done fighting for her and wanted her to get married and have a good life. It kind of sounded a little like Maltara died. Now, don't get me wrong, I still adore Maltara but...Maybe it isn't the right pairing after all? I don't know, that was just my thought on the matter. Tell me what you think!**

**And I know this is completely off topic, but for my Anime/Manga friends, have any of you seen the series Fruits Basket? Even if you're not really into Anime/Manga, I do suggest that you see it! It's hilarious. Of course, it is aimed towards more mature audiences (About the same age group for Cause of Death) And there are cute guys in it. ;D If you haven't seen it, check it out. You can watch it for free with limited ad interruptions, or you can watch it on Netflix. It's a great show. :D**

**Also, I just got my first audition! Until I get a wide range, of voices for both girls and boys, then parts will be handed out. So, please audition! :D I've already finished making part 1 and I just have to finish the script for part 2 and work my sims magic on it. Thank you again!**

**I believe that is it! Please enjoy this chapter. (It does include the characters from Left 4 Dead 1 and 2. :D )**

* * *

_March 6th_

"What is it now, Zoey?" a large, tattooed man asked, as a young woman peered outside the bars of a door.

The man had to be at least mid-thirties, while the girl was early twenties. The girl, Zoey, had dark brown hair pulled back in a pony tail, chocolate-colored eyes, a pink jacket, black skinny-jeans, and black converse high tops. Her face was decorated with various cuts and scratches. She held a pistol in her right hand as her left rested on the door.

The man wore a sloppy white undershirt and a black vest. His jeans were ripped and he had black combat boots on, giving him the appearance of a biker. He was balding and had a messy goatee. His name was Francis, one of Zoey's best friends.

"I could have sworn I heard something," she replied back, scanning the outside area.

"Zoe, it's almost midnight. The others are already sleeping and we have a long road ahead of us."

"I doubt San Francisco has any survivors," a man replied from a sleeping bag on the ground. He was also in his mid-thirties. His raven-black hair was messy from days of unrest. His blue eyes analyzed the ceiling above carelessly. He wore a white tuxedo with a light blue button-up shirt.

"Don't be such a pessimist, Nick," another called out from his sleeping bag about ten feet away from Nick's. (Nick had personally set it up himself.) The man had a heavy southern accent, since he came from Georgia. His light brown hair was covered with a blue mechanics hat. He also wore a light tan 'Bull-Shifters' shirt and overalls. The straps, however, were tied around his waist like a belt.

"Hey, Overalls," Nick growled, using his special nickname for the man, whose name was really Ellis. "Does it look like I care? We're all going to die anyway."

"Will you two just shut up!" a woman, also in a sleeping bag, groaned. She had dark-toned skin and black curly hair that was pulled back in a messy ponytail. She had on a pink t-shirt from a concert she had gone to before the apocalypse, and black skinny-jeans. "This whole 'road trip' you two have been fighting nonstop. I just want to have one peaceful night before we die."

"Hey...Can't a brother get his sleep?" Another man called out and placed his pillow over his ears. He also had dark-toned skin. He wore a white, blood-stained dress-shirt and torn pants. A red tie hung loosely around his neck. His name was Louis.

The only one who didn't talk was a rather large man, dozing away happily. Also dark-toned, he wore a purple and yellow polo-shirt that had a small high school logo in the corner and khaki pants. His name was Coach. The six carriers started fighting in hushed tones and soon, Francis stopped the commotion.

"Look, we've been up all day and the night before fighting for our lives," he said. "I know we're all tired and we just want to get this little vacation over with, but we need to get some sleep so we can kill some vampires tomorrow."

"For the last freakin time," Nick hissed, "they are _not _vampires, Francis. They. Are. Zombies."

"You can call them what you like, Tux," Francis retorted. "But they'll always be vampires."

Francis, Zoey, and Louis were a single group until they met up with Coach, Rochelle, Nick, and Ellis. Both fought in separate states, hoping to get out of this apocalypse and find a peaceful place to settle. After meeting up, they decided to start rescuing other carriers or survivors that might be out there.

Before meeting up with the other group, however, Francis, Zoey, and Louis had another teammate. He was a brave veteran who liked to torment Francis and protect Zoey. However, as the team approached a bridge and they tried to start it up, the first generator exploded. Seeing that his other teammates were in critical condition, the veteran, Bill, went to go start the second generator. While doing so, three large, horrifying zombies approached and killed him. Right after the generator had been turned on, that's when Rochelle, Coach and the others found Zoey, Francis, and Louis.

Ever since, Zoey's been terrified of losing her friends. That's why she anxiously watched the outside world, ready to protect.


	4. Chapter 4

**It's a little short again, but most of the chapters in this story won't be that long.**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-ZeDancingHobbit**  
***Holds hands up defensively***  
**I am still the same Katlana Child...At least I think. But I didn't particularly mean that Maltara was dead...Maybe that it might not work out as well as we had planned it? I dunno really, it's just a quickly thought out opinion. :) And these people are actually from the video game which this story is based off of; Left 4 Dead 1 and 2. I am going to post a few 'links' once I am done with review replies. Thank you! :D**

**-Maltara101**  
**Yes, Zoey is pretty cool. More about her will be revealed soon. I think she could relate to Mal rather well, truth be told. Whenever I play the game and I'm by myself, I always play as her. :) And we weren't really talking about favorite movies; movies that scare us, to be exact. But favorite scary movies are a fun topic too! :D Ooh! I've seen the new Woman in Black. That one is freakin' creepy. And when I'm terrified of a movie, I start laughing and I made the old couple in front of my friend and I at the theater move. I felt bad about it, but it suddenly didn't matter when the woman's face was pressed up against the window. I've never seen Final Destination 5, but it does sound familiar. And truthfully, I do like the idea. :) I mean, I'll most likely read it. :) Thank you for your continued support! It does mean a lot!**

**-mozzi-girl (Molleh!)**  
**Hello! :) Thank you for liking this story! And yes, more is definitely to come, for example; the wicked Special Infected) which are just zombies, but with certain powers. For example, a Hunter can pounce on people, kind of like a hunting cat. I will be explaining each zombie because it is kind of hard to grasp.) And the difference between a survivor and Carrier; I will answer that after the review replies. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-BreezyFan**  
**Yes, that idea does sound probable. :) I think they would make great friends! Anyway, thank you for reading and reviewing! It does mean a lot to me, really. :D**

**-But I Have Promises To Keep**  
**Well, you're in luck, because this chapter and the next do contain the Cause of Death characters. :D Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**Okay, so I realized that this story might not make as much sense as I thought it would. So, I decided to give you guys something to search up on Youtube to get a better understanding of the games and the characters. **

**I want you to search up 'Left 4 Dead Intro' and 'Left 4 Dead 2 Intro' Both are about 4 minutes long. They do contain swearing and A LOT of blood and violence (especially 2). Just a fair warning.**

**If you have any more questions or want me to clarify a bit more, then I would be happy to. **

**I did get the question, 'What's the difference between a survivor and a Carrier?' A Carrier, first off, is a person who can have the Zombie Virus in their body, but is not effected by it. However, they can give it to Non-Carriers without knowing. A survivor is just a name given to anyone still living through the apocalypse. I hope that helps. **

**In a couple of chapters, we will be facing the zombies and such and we will get more to the actual plot, but for now, enjoy Natara and Mal discussing their pasts. :)**

**Thank you for everything, guys! I really do appreciate your support! :D Enjoy!**

* * *

_March 9th_

I woke up suddenly, sitting upright in my sleeping bag. My breathing was heavy and sweat beaded across my forehead. I looked around at Kai and Ken, who were still napping away. Mal, on the other hand, was looking out the barred window connected to the red Safe-House door. He glanced over at me, hearing my dramatic awakening.

"You alright, Natara?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. He actually looked concerned, something I had seen a couple of times from him, but never towards me.

"Y-yeah. I'm just..." I stopped myself and breathed in a sigh. "I'm not used to this at all. I mean, I've been on numerous stake-outs where I had to sleep in the weirdest places...But this..."

"I understand," Mal said quietly. "That's why I took the night-shift."

"Won't you get tired out on the field?" I asked, getting out of the sleeping bag. I slowly made my way over to him, careful not to bump into Ken or Kai.

Mal smiled and resumed looking out the door. "It's the adrenaline that keeps me up," he replied. "Truth is, I didn't get any sleep until we found you. Even then, it was only a couple of hours."

I stood next to him, also looking out the window. Two zombies were in the middle of a brawl. One punched the other in the gut, while the second clawed at it's face.

"It's funny," Mal said quietly, his gaze locked forward. "You would think that because they're teammates, the zombies wouldn't be trying to kill each other off. If we just don't get involved, maybe they'll obliterate each other so we don't have to fight." Of course, he was joking, but I couldn't help but wonder.

A lingering silence fell upon us and I gently cleared my throat. "Mal...I-I heard about Sandra."

I saw a light blush come to his cheeks and he looked down. "Oh..."

"Yeah...I'm really sorry. She must have meant the world to you!"

"She did..." Mal replied softly. "But..." He paused, pondering for the right words to say. "We weren't exactly 'together' anymore. We got divorced a while back."

I opened my mouth to speak, but I couldn't find the right thing to say to him. I decided to use my profiling skills to see if I could dig a little deeper. The sadness in his eyes was apparent, as well as him playing with his wedding band. "You still love her, don't you."

"Well, they come as they are," he replied quietly. "She was a cheater...And a liar. I was the happiest man on earth when we got married, but soon it got to the point when she was home when I wasn't and vice versa. I figured out a few days after Christmas that she had been cheating on me and we called for a divorce. Everyone at the department still doesn't know." He shook his head and smiled lightly. "But it is like a weight is being lifted on my chest. Thanks for letting me share my disastrous marriage with you."

I smiled. "No problem, Mal."

"Okay," he said, and straightened up. "What's your story, then? When did you decide to come to San Francisco?"

The horrible night flashed back to memory. I knew I had to tell Mal, but I still felt emotionally unstable about the whole experience. Maybe he could help me overcome it.

"W-well," I said, my voice shaking lightly. "It all started when my boyfriend took me out to dinner. We were having a great time...Not even thinking about the threat of zombies. Near the end of the night, he..." I took a deep breath to calm down. I could feel the tears coming. "He proposed to me." I felt Mal's hand fall onto my shoulder. I looked over at him and he gave me a sad smile that clearly read, 'Go-On.'

"I was overjoyed," I continued after a few moments of collecting my thoughts. "I was going to get married and my parents, after so long, were finally seeing the pros of my career instead of the cons. Everything was great...Until a zombie strolled into the restaurant and attacked a woman. Shawn saw this before me and pushed me to the side, his gun already out. The zombie was faster and...He scratched Shawn."

"I'm so sorry," Mal said quietly. "Did he turn?"

"Yeah," I replied softly, "a few days after I left. He was texting me about it and in his last text, he told me that he could feel the virus overcoming his body."

I looked down at my engagement ring and sighed. "I'm sorry...I just..."

"You have nothing to be sorry about, Natara," Mal said and smiled kindly. "The sun's almost up. Why don't you get a little more rest before we head out."

I nodded and gave him a sad smile before heading back to my sleeping bag. I turned away from him so he couldn't see my growing smile. I had felt so much relief. Maybe...Just maybe, there was a chance that I could overcome Shawn's unfortunate fate. Maybe.


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry! This chapter was a little late.**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**Maybe. I'm kind of moving away from major Maltara, but there will definitely be a good friendship growing between the two. :) Hehe! Woman in Black was alright. However, right when my friend and I came home from watching the movie, her brother's little friend was sitting, glaring out of the window and we practically peed ourselves and booked it downstairs. A more memorable movie than most. :) And now that you mention it, I think I did see at least a little bit of Final Destination 5. Or maybe it was another movie, but did it have something to do with going to a car race and one of the cars spun out, or something like that, and the whole arena that they were in was getting destroyed. It was just a vision at first, then one guy convinced his friends to leave and the whole explosion thingy happened and someone's head got taken off by a rogue race car tire? **  
**Haha! That probably made no sense, but it does sound familiar. :)**  
**And yes! I am thinking of ideas for the sequel. In fact, I have almost everything down except the title and the beginning. I'm actually doing some research, something I despise doing, on Texas and plane rides and such. If you have an idea for what the title should be, I'm all open for ideas. So far, all I have is Road Trip, but I want something a little more...Meaningful. **  
**Thanks or reviewing and reading!**

**-mozzi-girl (BEAST!)**  
**Haha! Thank you, Molleh! :D That really means a lot! I'm glad you're enjoying the story and if you need anything else cleared up, I will be happy to help. :) And good choice; I watched the trailer for 2 at night and I couldn't sleep without thinking that a Spitter would show up in my room and drown me in acid...Smh. 2 is much more frightening than 1, though. I agree about Mal. :) Rugged babe, right? :) And yeah, I do miss Ken a lot and I wanted to bring him back for awhile. Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**Okay, again, sorry this was uploaded later than planned. It was a pretty hectic day; playing Sims and all that jazz. Also, I might not be able to post until tomorrow night because I am touring the new school I'll be attending this year. On Saturday, I won't be able to write at all; I am going to my mother's graduation and after that, my friend and I are going dancing. Sunday might be a better day and I might be able to squeeze in a quick chapter in the morning. Monday also looks good, but not Tuesday. School starts on Tuesday. :(**

**This chapter is a bit confusing and I apologize. Basically, the survivors meet with each other. I did some very quick editing. This is not my greatest chapter. **

**I will NOT be replying to the Minion reviews, actually. I'm sorry about that. Thank you, though, to those who did review and encourage me to make the sequel. :) Also, thank you for reading the story and sending positive feedback.**

**I'll try to post ASAP, but until then, please enjoy! :)**

* * *

_March 9th_

"Hey Zoey," Ellis called. "I think I see lights coming from that Safe-House."

It was very early in the morning and the seven survivors had found no safe place to rest for the night. Each were exhausted and would take anything they could get; even if the room was crowded.

"I wonder," Rochelle pondered aloud, "Do you think there might be other survivors?"

"Well," Zoey began slowly. "It's definitely possible. Should we go check it out?"

"Survivors or not," Nick growled, "It's our only shelter for the moment. I don't care if we have to sleep in the same freakin' sleeping bag. I am not getting attacked by another Hunter."

Coach sniggered at the memory. Nick had decided to take a break by leaning against a car. Out of no where, a shriek rang out, causing the survivors to jump and search for their attacker. Soon enough, a hooded man pounced from the shadows and on top of Nick, pinning him to the road. The zombie was different than the others. This zombie acted like a hunting panther, which resulted in the name. As the Hunter used it's razor sharp claws to tear at Nick, his five friends and Ellis came to the rescue, shooting away the beast before any actual harm could fall upon him.

"Let's go," Louis said and led the group towards the secluded building.

-C.O.D-

"Natara," Mal said quickly, his voice urgent. "Wake up Kai and Ken. We have company."

"Company?" I asked, sitting up from my spot.

"Seven people...They're carrying weapons, but they might be infected."

I nodded and gently shook the two men awake. Ken groaned loudly while Kai swiped at me, begging for at least eight more minutes of sleep.

Mal ducked out of the doorway and gripped his pistol just as the visitors knocked.

"Is anyone in there?" a rough voice called out.

Mal looked at me and placed his finger on his lips. The door jiggled and a girl cursed.

"Stupid survivors probably locked it and then got infected," she grumbled.

"For Pete's Sake," another man hissed, "just kick it open!"

"Yeah, that's a great idea, Nick! Why don't we bathe in barbeque sauce too!"

"Shut it, Overalls."

I raised an eyebrow and looked towards the door. "Should we open it?" I mouthed towards Mal and he shrugged. Ken slowly sat up and rubbed his head.

"Dang girl," he growled, just loud enough for our guests to hear. "We spend all day battling hoard after hoard of zombies and you wake me up how many hours earlyt to do what?"

"Dangit Ken," Mal growled. "Can you be any louder?"

One of the survivors began knocking on the door. "Hey, we can hear ya'll. Can you please open the door? We ain't infected!"

Kai sat up straight instantly. "AHHH! ZOMBIES!"

Mal sighed heavily and stood up, facing the others. "Wow...There really are a lot of you," he commented before opening the door. Seven people poured into the Safe-House, frightening Kai.

"You let the enemy in?!" Kai exclaimed.

"Ignore him," Mal stated and sat on top of a counter. "Who are all of you guys?" he asked quickly.

"Well," a girl begin, "I'm Zoey and these are my friends; Louis, Francis, Coach, Rochelle, Ellis and Nick." She pointed to each individual. "And you are?"

"I'm Mal," he replied, "and these are my comrades; Ken, Kai, and Natara."

"Well," the girl, Zoey, said with a somewhat kind smile. "It's nice to meet all of you. I hope you'll forgive us for the rude awakening. My friends and I have been fighting all night and we haven't been able to find shelter because some idiot keeps locking the doors on the way out."

I looked over at Kai and he hid a blush. "Yeah," he said, scoffing lightly, "What idiot would do such a thing."

"I dunno," Ken began with a smirk, "I know of one particular idiot who might do something like that; one who's terrified of zombies."

Kai glared towards Ken. "Hey, screw you, Ken."

And this was how we met our new friends, also known as the original seven survivors.


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry, I didn't have time to edit today.**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-mozzi-girl (Molleh, the Beast!)**  
**Thank you for replying! It does mean a lot! And yeah, school really sucks. But I have my friends and I cousin I didn't even know I had that'll be by my side. I've never been to a public school before, so this will definitely be a learning experience. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-Maltara101**  
**Hey! I might actually check out that series. It seems interesting. :) As for your title suggestion, I do like the idea. Though I like Keitnna, I am trying to focus more on Kristen and Keith's interesting family. I'll consider it though! Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

**Okay, so I might have lied, but then again, I did say maybe about writing on Sunday. Turns out, my mom's friend invited us, as a family, to dinner as a post-graduation celebration. And I usually don't write from 11AM-2PM. That's why I'm updating today. Monday seems like a free day so far, though. And like I said, school starts on Tuesday and this IS 9th grade we're talking about. My grade actually counts now, so I'm dedicated more of my time to my studies and academics, while Fan-fiction, Cause of Death, and any other obsession I have will be put on hold.**

**This is a bit of a dull chapter, but we learn more about Zoey's past. I want to focus more on Zoey than any other character because she has an intense background story and she's a tough chick. That, and the other characters don't have a life-changing story. (Although, I think Francis did sleep with a zombie...)**

**ANYWAY! Thank you for reading! I gots to do some stuff before I go dancing tonight, so I need to end here. Enjoy!**

* * *

We didn't actually get out of the Safe-House until the next day. We allowed our seven new friends to get some sleep and treat their wounds. During this time, they recalled their adventures.

"You see," Zoey began slowly as Francis gently wrapped up her ankle. "Francis, Louis and I are from Pennsylvania. We've been through Hell and back several times. Shortly after arriving in Louisiana, one of our teammates, Bill, died. He was a great man and I'm disappointed that you guys weren't able to meet him. Right after Bill was killed, we met these guys." She pointed towards Rochelle, Nick, Ellis, and Coach.

"We're from Georgia," Ellis said, grinning. "Well, at least Coach and I are. But that's also where we teamed up with Ro' and Nick. We don't have an interesting story like Zoe, but we did fight zombies all the way to New Orleans."

"I'm sorry for your loss, Zoey," Mal said quietly. "We've lost a few people as well, including my wife and Natara's fiance."

"Yeah," Ken confirmed, "but we also lost our whole police department."

Zoey's face lightened up. "You guys are police officers?" she asked. I could see a smile growing, but she tried her best to hide it.

"Well, Ken and I are detectives," Mal said and nodded towards me. "Natara works with the FBI."

"That is so cool!" Zoey exclaimed as Francis sat back down. "My father was a police officer. He's the reason I know how to shoot. I always thought the career choice was interesting, but my parents didn't think the same way. They sent me off to college with some high hopes that I'll end up in business or something."

"Funny," I replied, "my parents think the same." I sighed heavily. "Were you going to listen to them?"

"Probably not," Zoey replied with a grin. Her smile faltered slightly as she recalled an upsetting memory. "He's dead now, but I'm sure he would've been able to survive this; no sweat."

"Did he turn?" I asked slowly. I examined her expression, using my old profiling skills that I had neglected for awhile. Her eyes were filled with guilt and sorrow and she played with her pistol.

"Well...Not exactly. Mom did though, and she bit him. After shooting her, my dad begged me to end his life before he turned and hurt me."

"So, you killed your father?" Mal asked and Zoey nodded.

"It was hard, but I did it out of love." She started glaring at the floor. "It wasn't until after I killed him that I learned that he was a Carrier."

The room fell silent. I glanced towards Zoey. Her expression was more pained than guilty. She must have been crushed when she learned that. It was hard enough leaving Shawn behind, but she killed her father. To a young girl like herself, her father was probably her idol and her best friend.

And this man she had mentioned earlier; Bill. She seemed to care a lot about him. I'm guessing he was like a father-figure to her. I know that when I was her age, I relied so heavily on my parents, especially my father. Now...My dad's probably infected, dead, or never coming back.

I pulled by knees up to my chest and glared at the ground. Zoey took this as a sign to speak. "But really guys, I'm fine. And..." She paused. She quietly stuttered over her words before standing from her spot on the ground. "I'm going to take first watch tonight. If anyone wants to join me, speak now or forever hold your piece."

"I'll go with you," Mal spoke up. He pushed himself up and joined Zoey's side.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I think I'm ready to hit the hay," Kai said, yawning and moving over to his sleeping bag.

Biting my lower lip, I also crawled over to my sleeping bag. I wanted to also take watch, but Mal was our group leader and Zoey seemed to be theirs. I decided to let them get to know each other better. After all, if I had a team I trusted to back me up and we added more people, I would want to see if the others would also be there for me, or just chicken out.

It didn't take long for some lost sleep to find me.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello! :)**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-mozzi-girl (Beastleh!)**  
**Yup yup! Zoey is personally my favorite character in the first game. She's just so Bad-A! The thing about her though, is that she loves to watch horror movies and she has always been interested in the zombie apocalypse. In fact, there's a girl on YouTube who cosplays as her. She's from Kill9 TV and they do a lot of stuff Left 4 Dead related. :) And rugged babe...Hehe! Most definitely! :D Thank you so much! I appreciate the comment! :D Thank you for reading and reviewing! :)**

**-Maltara101**  
**Yeah, she's had a rough life. Hmm, never really thought about Mal/Zoey. Personally, I think they would make great friends, but as a couple, I don't know. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! **

**-BreezyFan**  
**Yay! :D I think I got her story right. I do know that her dad trained her at the shooting range and such, but I can't remember if I read in a fan-fic or if it was on Wikipedia that she shot her dad and realized later that he could have been a Carrier. And the fun stuff is starting to come up! :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! It means a lot.**

**Okay everyone, this is my last post before school starts again tomorrow. Hopefully I'll be able to post while still in school. Sims animations and such will not be released as much. In fact, my Speak Now video will probably be the last one for awhile.**

**A 'Special Infected' is introduced in this chapter. Special Infected are just zombies with special abilities. The one in this chapter is called a Smoker. Here's what the game guide says about this infected;**

**"Smokers work best from an out-of-sight vantage point. The greater the distance of a Tongue-Snare (their special attack), the less likely they'll be shot before they can drag in their prey. Ensnaring Survivors from rooftops leaves them helpless and hanging; perfect targets for a pounce (A special attack by a Hunter) or a vomit attack (A special attack used by the Boomer, which will be explained a little more.)"**

**As a final revenge, when Smokers are killed, the explode into a cloud of green smoke that can effect the survivors vision for a short period of time. **

**A Tongue-Snare is when the Smoker spits out his tongue and wraps it around a survivor. **

**They aren't the strongest Special Infected, but they do have a role when it comes to other attacks by different Special Infected and just the regular infected.**

**If you have any questions, feel free to send me a PM or just ask in a review.**

**Thank you so much for sticking with this story. I promise, the fighting is coming up and the huge plot point is revealed in this chapter.**

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

To be honest, I wasn't ready to face the infected again. I was enjoying our company with the other survivors. We learned so much about each other in the short time we had; well, at least I did. I could tell that Ellis was attracted to Zoey and tried his best to impress. Even out on the field, he'd do something amazingly simple and think it would catch Zoey's eye, like shooting with one hand. Then there was Francis. He and Zoey seemed to be rather close. Whenever she got hurt, he'd be the first to treat her wound, even if it meant that he didn't have any medication for his own.

Zoey in general was just nice to everyone. After their night of watching out the door, she and Mal seemed to have a nice friendship going on. They had each others backs most of the time and brainstormed of new plans to follow.

Kai was just being annoying as usual, and Ken was trying his best not to shoot him. Ken was like my personal body guard. While watching over me, he liked to recall some of his greatest memories with Mal. He did mention something about Vegas, but Mal shot him a deadly glare before he could continue the story.

I guess you could say despite the zombies, all was going well between the eleven of us.

"Where exactly are we headed?" Nick groaned, shouldering his his Hunting Rifle. The seven survivors had different weapons than all of us. Kai, Ken, Mal and I were stuck with pistols.

"Alcatraz," Mal answered. "Since zombies are unable to swim...We thought that it would be the safest place for us."

Zoey stopped in her tracks. "Not to be rude or intrude on your plan or anything," she began slowly, "but my team and I came here because we heard the antidote resided in the city."

"Why didn't you tell us that before we walked this far away from a Safe-House?" Ken groaned.

"I thought you were leading us to it," Rochelle admitted. "I mean, that's the only reason why we came here. We were supposed to be headed towards the Florida Keys, but Zoey was convinced that the antidote was here. And you're telling us that it's not?"

"Well I don't know!" Mal grumbled. "I'm not a scientist. And I'm sure that all the scientists in San Francisco are infected."

"Um...Guys?" Kai began quietly.

"Shut it, Kalaba," Mal growled and turned towards Zoey. "This is why you joined our team; because you thought we were headed towards the antidote?"

"Guys!" Kai continued. I should have looked at what was bothering him, but I was too interested in what was going on between Mal and the others.

"I'm not going to lie," Zoey said quickly, "that's exactly what I thought."

"Seriously guys!" Kai shouted.

"I told you to shut up!" Mal hissed, facing him. His eyes widened when he saw what Kai was so worried about. A horde of unaware zombies stumbled about. There had to be at least thirty of them. They groaned lightly and pushed each other, as if they were conversing.

"Well," Nick growled, "what are you waiting for?"

"I've never been around this many," Ken gulped, gripping his pistol. "Maybe we should wait until they leave."

"That could take hours though," Coach added. "Come on, brother."

Zoey smiled and cocked her pistol. "Let's go, guys!" They took off, leaving Ken, Kai, Mal and I standing like idiots. They seemed so excited to blow out some zombie brains and the four of us were terrified.

"Well, if you can't beat them," Kai began and walked forward, "join them!"

I shrugged slightly. "I dunno, Kai. It seems like they have it under con..."

I was stopped in mid-speech as something cold and slimy wrapped around my waist. I gasped before I was yanked away from my spot.

"Natara!" Ken shouted, catching the attention of a few of the fighting survivors. I took a quick glance at what was around my waist. It looked like a tongue of some sort. Despite being grossed out, I took notice that my airways were beginning to be constricted. Each breath was harder to gain than the last.

"Hold on, Natara!" Mal shouted and whipped out his pistol. He fired shots above my head, but whatever he was trying to hit must have dodged all of the bullets.

After a short second, I was in the arms of a taller zombie. He raised his clawed hands and started ripping at my clothes. I yelped in pain and fear as he tore deeper. His face was covered in pulsating boils and all you could see was his inhuman tongue, pulsing as it squeezed the life out of me.

"Help!" I managed to squeak.

"I got it!" Nick called and aimed towards the monster that was holding me captive. He let out one shot and the infected man exploded in a cloud of green, murky smoke. I fell to my knees, regaining my stolen breaths. Mal was the first to join my side. He gently helped me up, along with Ken's help. Nick approached dully and scowled towards me.

"You must be new to this world, Princess," he snarled. "If you don't keep your eyes open and your guard up, you _will _get killed."

"What was that?" I coughed, inhaling some of the dirty smoke. Mal and Ken began coughing as well, but Nick seemed unfazed.

"That is a Smoker, one of the least dangerous zombies out here," Nick responded coldly. He tossed me a small canister filled with pills. "Take some of these. And don't pull a stupid stunt like that again." With that said, he walked away, having not a single care in the world if I would be okay.


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello everyone! :D**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**It's alright to hate on Nick. I did at first, but he is one of my favorite characters. :) And wow...That's a lot of hate. Oh my gosh, that would be awesome! :D Nick is a little...Rough. :) Every time I mention Speak Now, the song gets stuck in my head too! Ooh! I love Call Me Maybe! Haha! Every time it comes on the radio or on my ipod, or even at a dance, my friend and I act like complete idiots. And even my aunt does the same. My aunt, cousins, and I had a dance party on July 24th and when that song came up...I was dying of laughter. It's so catchy! Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-mozzi-girl (Beast! ((You get three exclamation points because you're just that Beastleh! :D )) )**  
**Ah yes, our little Nick is just a ray of sunshine. Smh. :) Keep in mind that the Smoker is basically nothing compared to whats to come in this chapter. :) Hehe! Reading a horror story at 1:05 AM always sounds fun! :D Thank you for reading and reviewing, Molleh! It means a lot! :D And did I mention how much I love your replies? :D Keep being Beastleh!**

**-BreezyFan**  
**Hehe! I like how a lot of people found the Smoker creepy. In the game, it really isn't. I might have over-exaggerated, but what the heck, right? Then again, its face is kind of creepy. Ooh! And four more dangerous zombies appear in this chapter. They are much more powerful than the pointless Smoker. :) Hehe! Thank you for the review and for reading! :D**

**-Oryt**  
**Yes...Yes he is. :)**  
**Aww, thank you!**  
**Hmm, I've never seen Shaun of the Dead. Might check it out now! :) And a lot of people have different opinions on how zombies work. In the games I've played, they've always been fast and furious. I just can't play with slow zombies. They bore me. But yes, in Left 4 Dead, zombies can run. They're stupid though, so I guess it takes away some of the fear. Then again, they'll stop at nothing to kill something.**  
**Haha! The Smoker really did seem to frighten a few people. :) Just wait when the bigger, badder and more deadly zombies come in. (In fact, the deadliest zombie is actually a female.)**  
**Thank you for reading and reviewing! I appreciate your kindness!**

**Alright, sorry I haven't updated. School was a lot more hectic than I thought. I already have two tests to study for and I have homework. (Most of it is Art though, and I don't mind it. I might post some of it on my Tumblr if I get the chance. ((My Tumblr is actually Katlanac.)) ) And it is the second day of school. However, my B-Day has proved to be favored among the A-Day. The reason; Because I have Math and Geography on A-Day. I hate those subjects, even if the teachers are pretty legit. On B-Day, though, I have Creative Writing, and during that class, we do A LOT of free-writing so I'll be able to cook up ideas for this story and maybe Fable of Death.**

**I also have Film Lit., a religious class called Seminary, and Photography. A Days is English 9, Geography, Math, and then Science, which is actually pretty fun because my teacher, though nerdy, is pretty funny and works with our pace.**

**Now down to business. Four more zombies are introduced in this chapter. At the end, I will give a quick explanation of each. Thank you! :D**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

_That is a Smoker, one of the least dangerous zombies out here._

_You must be new to this world, Princess._

_If you don't keep your eyes open and your guard up, you _will _get killed._

Nick's taunts hung in my head throughout the rest of the day. After his rude approach, Rochelle assured me that once you got to know him and he began to like you, he wasn't as bad. I don't believe her though. Someone _that _nasty couldn't have a 'nice-side'.

We reached the pier overlooking Alcatraz. Mal smiled and pointed. "We're almost there. We just need a way to get over there."

"I'm guessing a boat would be our best way of transportation," Ellis said, smirking. "Oh! That reminds me of this one time my buddy, Keith, and I were hanging out in Louisiana and we decided to go check out the gators in a little rowboat. You see, Keith and I weren't the smartest people back then, but..."

"Ellis, honey," Rochelle said, gently touching his shoulder. "We don't have time for a story right now. Maybe when we get to the Safe-House?"

"Alright!" Ellis gave her a confident smile and looked out into the ocean. "Can you believe we're this close to the antidote!"

"We're not exactly positive that there is an antidote," Mal said quietly. He looked towards Zoey. She had been quite silent since the Smoker attack. "I'm sorry, Zoey. Maybe there is an antidote...We just haven't been able to find it."

"Don't worry about it," she replied softly. "Let's just get to a safe place for the night and get some well deserved rest."

"One problem," Nick spoke up. He brought his hand to his ear. "Hear that?"

I copied him and heard the faintest sob of a young woman. My eyes widened in fear.

"It sounds like a stationary one," Nick confirmed. "Walking ones usually sound younger."

"What are you talking about, man?" Ken asked, also cupping his ear.

"Witches," was all Nick said. He reloaded his Hunting Rifle and peered through the scope.

"Like...Hocus-Pocus witches?" Kai asked and Francis shook his head.

"We're talking about a girl who is clearly on 'her time of the month' and is constantly crying. She's pale with white, stringy hair and red eyes. She has 12 in., razor sharp claws that tear through flesh like scissors to paper. If you get to close to her, shoot her, or even shine a flashlight on her, she'll go berserk and tear you to shreds."

"Oh," Kai responded, looking down.

"Well, that's just fantastic," Ken groaned.

Zoey began listening intently and frowned. "Do you guys hear..."

"Growling?" Nick questioned.

"And burping?" Mal asked, also frowning.

"Oh sh..." Ellis began, but was stopped by a loud shriek. In seconds, the country boy was pinned to the ground, a blue-ish, pale man kneeling on top of him. The man wore a hood. Tape was around his arms and legs. He lifted up a clawed hand and threw it on top of Ellis.

"GET IT OFFA ME!" Ellis cried out and wrestled with the beast. I stepped back in fear and bumped into something. Thinking it was one of our teammates, I turned around to apologize. Instead, I was faced with an obese zombie. He wore a dark blue, bloodstained shirt that was a size too small. He also wore grey sweats. His skin was a sickly green and boils were placed all over his body. One settled on his left eye. He reeked of vomit.

I shrieked and pushed him away from me.

"Step back," Louis demanded and I didn't hesitate to obey. Louis jumped to his knee and shot the overweight zombie. Instantly, it exploded. Green liquid shot out, frosting the ground beneath the man. All that was left were his legs. I nearly vomited as I turned away. It smelled awful, I'm not going to lie. The smell was toxic, causing the world to spin around me. Mal grabbed my shoulders and led me away from the mess.

The beast attacking Ellis had been shot off. Coach was pulling him up as the others observed the scene.

"Well," Nick began slowly. "You did something right, Princess." I raised an eyebrow and he continued. "The 'thing' you just ran into is called a Boomer. If you shot that thing, you would be covered in it's Bile, attracting a major horde of zombies. Boomers and Hunters, the beast that was trying to rip Overall's face off, like to work together."

Though it wasn't much of a compliment, I still smiled secretly.

"Why don't we stop with the cute confessions," Francis growled, "and let's get to the island. I bet they have guns there and I need a new one."

"Good idea," Zoey said. "I think we could all use some ammo. Louis, Coach and Rochelle; why don't you three go find us a ferry of a small boat. We need a way to get there."

"On it!" Coach replied and the three disappeared from sight. Zoey then faced Francis and Nick.

"You two should probably search for anything we could use; pipe bombs, cocktail molotovs, first aid...You know, any of that good stuff."

"Sure thing, Cupcake," Nick replied and pulled Francis along with him. Ellis widened his eyes when Zoey turned to give him orders. She opened her mouth to speak, Ellis eagerly waiting, when a large roar echoed through the air. Both of their faces drained of color instantly.

"What was that?" Ken asked quickly, gripping his pistol.

"That didn't sound friendly," Kai said quietly, examining the area for the source of the sound.

"I should have known," Zoey growled. "Ellis, how many rounds do you have left?"

Ellis shrugged. "About two more refills?"

Zoey then faced the four of us. "Pull out your guns. Now!"

I reached to grab my firearm when a large piece of road flew above our heads. At that moment, Kai nearly peed himself.

"What was that?" Mal gasped, looking behind him. I followed this action and my heart stopped.

_No..._

* * *

**Witch: "Witches only want to be left alone so they can enjoy a good cry. They hate flashlights and loud noises, but what they hate more is being shot at. If you hear a Witch's tell tale sobs, turn off your flashlight and try to sneak around her. If she starts to get angry, her growl will let you know she's close to attacking." -Left 4 Dead Game Guide.**

**Hunter: Hunters got their name because that's what they do. If they spot a survivor, they'll try their best to catch it but pouncing. If a survivor does get pounced, they need assistance from their teammates to remove the zombie. Hunters like to team up with other special infected and use their attack as a coup de grace.**

**Boomer: "The fat, slow Boomer vomits a thick bile with two side-effects: It blinds Survivors and it attracts hordes of Infected. When Boomers are killed, they explode, showering bile on anyone nearby." -Left 4 Dead Game Guide. A Boomer usually gets close to a group of Survivors. Most of the time, out of fear, the Boomer is shot by some one in the group before someone else pushes the zombie away.**

**I won't explain what the next zombie is, mainly because it's the fun one. :) It's the only one that I am really scared of when I play the game. **

**The Witch is the strongest zombie. Depending on what Difficulty you play on the game, she can either incapacitate you (When incapacitated, you are stuck on the ground, only able to shoot with pistols. You have to wait for someone to come pick you up before you bleed out and die, or the thing attacking you kills you.) or she can kill you instantly. The next zombie, though extremely difficult to beat on Easy, doesn't kill anyone instantly unless that one person's health is already very low.**

**Witches can kill you, even if you are at 100% health.**

**Thank you for reading!**


	9. Chapter 9

**I am so sorry for the late update!**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**I don't blame you one bit. I didn't like Nick for the longest time. :)**  
**And yes, the classes are pretty cool! I love them!**  
**Hehe! And yes, we always have Lady A! :D**  
**Thank you for reading and reviewing, Tori! It means a lot to me! :D**

**-mozzi-girl (Beast!)**  
**Thank you! And yeah, it does kind of suck. The only class I really don't like is Math. The teacher is really nice, but I just don't grasp the subject. And it's TWO HOURS LONG. My brain cannot focus on a subject for that long. Oh well. And when do you get back to school?**  
**Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-BreezyFan**  
**Good advice! :) And thank you! I'm trying my best to describe them, but it is kind of hard to. Thank you for reading and reviewing! I appreciate it! :)**

**Okay, here is my excuse for not writing;**

**School. The end.**

**Anyway, it is the weekend and I'll try to post as much as I can. I am thinking of making a new story, but it'll have to wait for awhile. **

**Also, I might be taking down Fable of Death if I can't think of anything within the next month or so. I am at a part where it's just before one of the extremely important parts and then the huge battle, but until I finish the current 'Pain-In-The-Butt' scene...**

**I have had a lot of female auditions for Speak Now. If you can get a male friend to also audition, that would be great. If this little wish can't be fulfilled, no problem. I have already created the first part and I have subtitled encorporated into it. If all else fails, I'll just use that. However, I am thinking of starting a new Voice-Over series and it will not be Cause of Death related, but it most definitely will be interesting. There will be Werewolves, Sprites, and regular humans. The basic plot is; A young werewolf girl falls in love with one of her classmates. He doesn't know her secret, but will learn in an odd way. **

**It's still in it's developing stage, but it's slowly getting there. I already created the household and now I just have to make the film, which will be hard.**

**I also have one final Sims Music video in mind involving Kai and Amy. I do have an idea for Blaise/Jeremy, but that one might not show for awhile.**

**The next zombie will be described after this chapter.**

**That's it for now! Thank you and enjoy! :D**

* * *

"TANK!" Ellis shouted at the top of his lungs, hoping to catch the attention of the other survivors. He whipped out his pistol and released a round on the monster.

A Tank was nothing like I had ever seen before.

It was huge; just a little under the size of an adult elephant. He had ripped muscles and a crazed look in his eye. His jaw was missing, causing his tongue to lay flat. He roared viciously and tore up the asphalt, grabbing another chunk of road.

I'll admit it, I screamed when I saw the road coming towards me. Thankfully Mal yanked me aside before any damage was made.

"Get out of the way!" Zoey shouted, also shooting the beast. Kai and Ken joined her side, but I was still frozen in fear. Mal gently slapped my cheek to bring me back to reality.

"Natara," he said quickly, "you alright?"

"N-no," I stuttered. Was I?

The Tank swung his massive hand and it connected with Zoey's chest. She flew backwards and slammed her head on a railing leading to the beach. She was out cold instantly.

"Zoe!" Ellis called. He stole a glance before returning to the tank. "You great, big, son of a..."

"Fire in the hole!"

I looked behind Mal and I. Francis stood poised near the end of the beach. He wielded a flaming whiskey bottle. The Tank roared again and Francis threw the bottle.

_CRASH!_

The Tank screamed out, his whole body engulfed in flicking flames. Somehow, the mutant still had enough strength to bash some heads. He galloped towards Ken and Kai like an ape, using his arms. The two dodged his swing swiftly, but Ellis wasn't so lucky. He didn't fly back as much as Zoey, but it was still enough to have the wind knocked out of him. He clutched his stomach and breathed heavily.

Francis, now at the head of the fight, was blasting shots with a new, much more powerful firearm. Nick soon joined his side, also wielding a newer weapon.

"Stay here," Mal commanded and he left my side. He knelt next to Zoey and attempted to wake her up. When all failed, he pulled her onto his shoulders, fireman style, and took her to where I was.

By this time, the Tank was showing signs of slowing down. The final blow was delivered by Kai, who pistol whipped the beast. The Tank fell to his knees and backwards, finally proving that it was dead. Francis, Ken, Kai, and Nick fell onto their backs, exhausted and shaken.

"He...Was...Already injured," Nick panted. "He wasn't as difficult to beat than the others."

"Let's not worry...About that now," Ken groaned. "We got to get out of here."

Next to me, Zoey stirred slightly, causing Ellis's attention to be drawn towards her. "Zoe!" he called out and crawled over to us.

The fear was slowly fading away and I was beginning to take in my surroundings once more. Ken and Kai also looked towards Zoey, and spotted me.

"Nat," Ken said, raising an eyebrow. "Are you alright?"

"She's just a little shaken," Mal replied, gently rubbing my back. His attention was back to me. "Are you feeling a little better?"

I nodded slowly and glanced at Zoey and Ellis. Ellis cared so much about her. He gently stroked her cheek and gripped her hand protectively. He whispered comforting words in her ear as she came back to reality. It was something you would expect from him, really. Ellis proved to be a huge Softie when we first met.

"Is she okay?" I asked him and he nodded with a calm smile.

"She should be. She's definitely seen worse!"

In the distance we heard a few happy laughs. Coming into sight were Coach, Rochelle, and Louis. They looked happy. Even excited.

"We found a boat!" Louis called.

"We should be at Alcatraz by tonight!" Coach added.

And for a minute, I was smiling. We'd be out of here and on an island...An island that was not reachable by zombies. We would be safe...

At least, that's what I hoped.


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey everyone! :D**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**Haha! You really do not like Nick. :) As for your audition, there is a good chance that you'll get in. I've only gotten 3 auditions, and there are 3 female roles open. But trust me, each audition I've received is amazingly done and I can tell it's going to be hard to assign parts. However, please note that I cannot promise you anything. And the priest needs to be a male, but if you can do a pretty stellar male voice, then I'll definitely consider. (I understand that in some cases, there are female priests, but the video is already made and the priest is male.) Thank you for reviewing and reading, Tori! :D**

**-BreezyFan**  
**Hehe! Ellis...Oh I know I've said this a lot, but he is one of my favorites. He's so adorable! We're going to learn more about him in future chapters. We're also going to learn about the other survivors that don't get as much credit as Zoey, Francis, Ellis, and Nick. And I thought Kai would do something like that. A pistol-whip in the game is considered a weak slap. I've never actually killed a Tank by just pistol whipping, but it has happened before. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-mozzi-girl (Molleh!)**  
**Oh my...Tanks are one of my fears. Like, if a zombie apocalypse actually happened, I'd be screwed if there was a Tank. My friend (the one who plays Cause of Death) loved to play Left 4 Dead with me and every time we saw a Tank, it was almost instant death. Even when we were on the easiest difficulty, we would either commit suicide by jumping off the ledge of a building or setting ourselves on fire, or we would attempt to deal with the beast and fail almost 90% of the time. Mal is such a sweetheart! I adore how he really does care enough about Natara that all he wants is for her to be in 'good hands'. He's such a gentleman. :)**  
**And yeah, math stinks. And really? Didn't you just get off of school a month ago? It seems like you're going back so soon! :( School gets in the way of everything...We shall make it together though! :D**  
**Keep being beastleh and fantastic! :D Thank you so much!**

**Alright, just one thing; I was terrified at church today. I mean, not only was I feeling sick to my stomach, but I saw Eric Mills. No. Freakin. Joke. (I'll admit, I only got 3 hours of sleep ((Tumblr's Fault))...) But seriously! He was sitting a few rows ahead of me and he was alone, quietly scanning the people around him. He had short, blondish brownish hair and the same glasses. **

**This isn't the first time I suspected someone, who liked like a Cause of Death character, of being a serial killer.**

**While at my mother's graduation, I saw a man who looked EXACTLY like Esteban Flores. He had the mustache, the hair...Everything. While everyone was getting settled in their seats, he kept looking over at me and my first thought was, "Oh crap. He's going to kill me...I just know it! It's either that or I am going to get raped. Oh crap...Oh crap...Oh crap..."**

**Turned out, he was my mom's best friend's dad. -.-' . Cause of Death has made me socially awkward.**

**Well, that's really it for my randomness. I am thinking of working on writing the script for Pt. 2 of Speak Now, since I am doing absolutely nothing else today.**

**Thank you for sticking with me! This chapter is mainly getting to know some of the characters and then the next involves the plot again. I can safely say that story will be ending very soon. And after, I may or may not post a long one-shot/short story before posting the sequel to Minion. **

**Please enjoy! :D**

* * *

Like what Coach had stated, we arrived at Alcatraz by nightfall. The reason; we had two boats and we had to row our way there.

"So far, so good," Nick reported. "Looks like we might actually survive after all."

We were all equipped with better guns than just a normal pistol. Clipped to our side was our canister of pain pills and either a pipe-bomb (which attracts zombies like moths to a light) or a Molotov. Strapped to each of our backs was a red and white med-kit.

"The best thing we can do now is set up camp," Zoey announced. "Francis, Nick and Louis, I want you three to head out and search the island."

"Got it, Chief," Louis said with a smile and dragged the two others with him. Zoey then faced Ken, Kai, Mal and I.

"Can you four search the cells and everything for supplies and/or zombies?" she asked.

Mal nodded. "Sure thing." He turned to us and smiled. "Come on, Gang. The sooner we do this, the sooner we can capture some well-deserved sleep."

Mal led us through the cells. He seemed to know where he was going, but halfway through, he did admit that he had no clue how this place was mapped out. We ran into one or two zombies wearing very vibrant Hawaiian shirts, similar to the one Kai was wearing. We were all thankful that we didn't find anything worse than a regular zombie.

Around midnight, we finally found our way back to Zoey and her little team. They somehow started a small campfire and were all sitting around it, acting like it had been ages since they had so little to worry about for the night. I don't blame them; it probably was.

The fire flickered eerily, casting creeping shadows all around us. Since no one seemed in dire need of rest, we conversed among each other, learning new things about our partners in survival.

"Ya know," Ellis said, smiling towards me, "I had a buddy back in Georgia named Keith. Now, he wasn't the smartest fella, but he definitely knew a lot of things that the government didn't know..." Ellis was such a kind man. Though he seemed childish in ways, you could tell that he had a big heart and cared nothing less than making the people around him smile in such a dark time.

After Ellis, my attention turned towards Louis. He was similar to Ellis, though he acted his age. He gave me his back-story, explaining that he worked for a computer company. He laughed lightly when he told me that his friends made fun of him for going to a shooting range every once and a while to learn how to properly use a gun.

Coach came from Ellis's town, though they didn't know each other that well. He used to be a football coach for a high school, but soon had to quit, due to some knee injury. He was also a very positive man, and somewhat a good singer.

Rochelle told me that she used to be a news reporter. She began like every other new employee, making and serving coffee. But as the infection settled in, she found herself moving forwards in her career and eventually, becoming the head anchor. But there was no one else working at the station at that time. Rochelle was more sweet and kind than optimistic. She said she didn't like sugar-coating the zombie apocalypse because the zombie apocalypse is not meant to be a sweet thing.

I didn't dare bother Nick with my questions; in fact, no one dared. He leaned against a cinder-block, quietly polishing his gun with his jacket sleeve. He was very mysterious, the way he did things.

Francis was the last one I talked to before finally falling asleep. He gave me a short summary of his little journey.

"I used to own the streets," he said, smiling as the memory came back. "Me and my gang...We tore through that asphalt like it was nobody's business. We got all of the free beers and not to mention the chicks. I've heard a lot about the apocalypse on my journey east from California, but I didn't mind. One night, I found this cute girl. She was a little tipsy and I spent the night with her. However, I woke up to her trying to claw my face off and I had to shoot. Shortly after that, I left and met Louis and old-man Bill."

Bill. He was mentioned a lot, but I still didn't know his back-story. However, I could tell his true teammates didn't want to relive such a painful memory.

As I settled down to welcome my night's sleep, I began thinking; What if I lost my team? Though I do care for Louis, Zoey, Francis and the others...But what if I lost Ken, Kai or Mal? I don't think I'd be able to handle any of their deaths. I owe them my life because of what they did the day they found me. They could have shot me, believing I was some girl who was going to become infected anytime. Or they could have totally skipped the hotel and I would be dead right now. I owe them everything.

I stole a glance towards Mal. Though he was lying down and appeared to be asleep, I heard him talking to Ken in a hushed whisper. I couldn't make out their dialect completely, but I did hear my name.

I took one last glance towards Zoey. She had offered to take first watch and no one argued with her; not even Mal. She sat near the water, looking over it's gleaming surface lit by a full moon. In a way, she was like the mother of our group. She cared so much for us that she took the night-shift every single night. She was one of the bravest fighters on our team, compared to the men of course. Though, there was a certain sadness in her brown eyes. She always looked disappointed and upset. It might have been this man, Bill, she talked so much about.

The last thought that ran through my mind before utter darkness crept into my vision was my real family.

_Would I ever see them again? Are they infected? Will they welcome me home as soon as this all blows over? Do they still care?_

I don't know.


	11. Chapter 11

**This chapter is mainly talking, but it is important! :)**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-mozzi-girl (Beast!)**  
**Thank you! That means a lot, coming from you. :) And I have to admit, when I first heard Francis's back story, I was quite amused. :) And dang...School just gets in the way doesn't it. Thanks for reading and reviewing!**

**-Maltara101**  
**Yup! And thank you! :D Yes, Ellis is a cutie, isn't he. :) I'm trying to add more of him in future chapters, just because I love him to death. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-ZeDancingHobbit**  
**(I sent you a reply by PM.)**

**Not really in the mood to do anything right now; mainly edit. So, this is just some talking and such. Kai comes up with a brilliant idea, that is all I'll say.**

**I still need a title for the Minion sequel, if anyone is up for it.**

**Also, let me just say that I am extremely excited for next week's NOW AIRING, which is why I am not accepting Spoilers. Sorry. I really want something to look forward to when I get home next Monday and after I do all of my chores and such.**

**And before I sign off, I'm wondering; Has anyone here played Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney for the iPod? I just got it and I am loving it! I'm only on Episode 3, but I was hooked when the court session actually started on Episode 1. Just wondering! I've only played this particular game, but if there are others out there that I can get for a good price, I would love to play them! **

**Thank you for everything, guys! I really do appreciate the support!**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

"So...This is how we die," Nick groaned. "We grow old together, whether we want to or not, and we're not allowed to leave until CEDA decides to get off their lazy butts and come save us."

"Believe me," Zoey began, "living on this island is much better than living with CEDA. They treat Carriers like animals and lock them in cages."

"Speaking from experience, Doll-Face?" Nick asked, rolling his eyes.

"Actually, yes. Francis, Louis, Bill and I were stupid enough to trust them and we almost got killed. They wanted to perform tests to see what makes us a Carrier."

"That's it!" Kai exclaimed and jumped to his feet. "That's the answer!"

Ten pairs of eyes rested on him finding interest in what he just said. He gulped slightly and continued with his 'discovery'. "Don't you guys see it?" he asked.

"See what?" Coach replied, shrugging.

"The cure! It's right in front of us! In fact, it's inside of us!"

"What are you talking about, Kalaba?" Mal demanded and Kai smiled.

"You know how doctors can usually put blood into someone's body? Well, every infected being out there could use a bit of our blood. I'm guessing that's the cure!"

"You do realize there are some faults within your plan," Louis cut in. "I mean, it's a good idea...But there are over 6 billion people in the world. I don't think we have enough blood to donate."

"It's simple! All we have to do is cure a few people at a time, ask for their blood, and then cure more and more people. Ken and I can go get supplies and fight off the hordes."

"It's dangerous for two newbies to the apocalypse to go alone," Ellis warned. "I can tag along, if y'all like?"

"Sure," Ken said, "I don't mind the extra help."

"Then it's settled. Tomorrow morning, Ellis, Ken, and I will go find the equipment and bring home our very first test subject!" Kai clapped his hands together and grinned wildly. "I've always wanted to perform tests on a zombie."

"You know," Mal began, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I thought you had a little sanity left in you...Until you said that."

Kai shrugged. "You have very high hopes, Malachi!"

-C.O.D-

I never got the chance to say goodbye to my friends. They left while I was still slumbering away. When I woke up from the odd silence left by Kai, I didn't know what to think. I just hoped they would be alright.

In the afternoon, while I picked at the excuse that was my lunch, Mal and Zoey joined my side, both smiling kindly.

"Hey Nat," Mal greeted.

"I don't think I've really gotten the pleasure to get to know you, Natara," Zoey said happily. "We might as well start now while there's nothing going on."

I blushed slightly. True...I didn't really talk to Zoey that much. I didn't want to make myself look like a fool in front of her. After all, she was the leader of the Original Seven Survivors, the greatest team known to anyone who hasn't been infected.

"Well, what do you want to know?" I asked, setting my plate aside and sending Mal a quizzical look. He just smiled and Zoey started her reply.

"Well, I know you're from the FBI. How about your home life? I see an ring; are you married?"

My blush deepened and I looked at my hand. There it was, Shawn's ring. It still pained me to see it. "Um...I...I was engaged."

Zoey's smile faltered. "Oh...Let me guess; Zombie?"

I only nodded and she placed her hand on my shoulder. She gave me a comforting smile. "I know how you feel. I lost my father, as you know, and one of my best friends out on the field."

My mind protested against it, but my mouth was too slow to receive the message. "How did your friend die?"

Zoey sighed heavily and stared at her interlaced fingers. "Well, it's a long story really. It involves nearly a week being trapped in CEDA HQ and a lot of zombies. To shorten it a bit, I'll just say...He was killed by three tanks."

"Three?" Mal asked in disbelief. He shook his head. "And we thought one was bad."

Zoey smiled. "I bet he would have liked you guys. You're very hard workers, and he enjoyed working around people like that."

An awkward, heavy silence fell among the three of us. I didn't remove my steady gaze on the ground. Zoey stood up and yawned. "I should probably get some sleep before the men come back," she said and waved to us. "I'll talk to you guys soon!"

Mal waved back and stood up as well. "Hey, last night I found this really cool spot on the edge of the island that overlooks the entire sea and some of San Francisco. There's a full moon tonight and I know it's going to look fantastic. Do you want to come see it with me?"

I blushed...Heavily. I mean, I liked Mal as a friend and person...But this felt too awkward. Like, Date-Awkward. I looked up to give him my rejection but saw his serene smile. Something about it was so convincing.

_Have fun, _my mind argued. _You probably won't for a very long time. Besides, Mal just lost his wife and he knows you just lost your fiancee. Maybe you can build up your friendship a little more._

"Natara?" Mal asked, noticing my delay in answering.

"Oh, sorry," I said quickly and also stood up. "That would be nice, Mal. Thank you."

He grinned before walking off.

_He is so mysterious..._


	12. Chapter 12

**I know, I know, we're slowly moving along, but I have an interesting plot twist coming up! :D (Also, I didn't really take the time to edit today. I need to wake up early tomorrow and I didn't have enough time set aside.)**

**REVIEW REPLIES: **

**-mozzi-girl (Beast!)  
Hehe! I love that. :D 'Rugged Babe'. It's so true though. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-Maltara101  
Hello! :D Thank you so much for reading and reviewing! It means a lot! :)**

**I've been meaning to tell you guys this for awhile, but decided against it several times. But I'm just going to come out with it...**

**My science teacher is Kai Kalaba. :)**

**Okay, maybe he's not THE Kai Kalaba, but he acts EXACTLY like him. He's really smart and all and loves all of that comic book/science vacation stuff. That's not even the best part though.**

**I discovered that he was a lot like Kai when some kids were peeking into our classroom window, disturbing the peace. Without saying anything, the teacher opens a drawer, pulls out a large Nerf gun, exits the room and starts shooting at the students. He then made them pick up all of the bullets and got them in trouble.**

**Another time, the same thing happened, but he jumped to his feet and grabbed a small football from his desk drawer and bolted out of the room, shouting, "Museum of Science Football of Doom!" A few seconds later, he came back with a huge grin and reported that he hit the kid disturbing our class in the head with the football. Needless to say, he's one of my favorite teachers. Plus, just the random stuff that he says reminds me of Kai. When he's bored, he'll make helicopter noises and then he goes on about one of his science vacations and...Yeah, he's awesome.**

**Enough about that! I have some somewhat exciting news. :)**

**I have finally decided on a title for the Minion sequel. I won't reveal it yet, but thank you to those who tried to help me. I appreciate it. :)**

**The Minion sequel will be released soon enough. I just need to finish this story and hopefully work on Fable of Death. (Which I am considering just taking it off because it isn't working out the way I originally planned.)**

**Thank you for all the support, guys! I love it! **

**If you want to follow me on Tumblr, my name is Katlanac . It's like my Facebook page. The only difference? I actually USE my Tumblr.**

**Please enjoy and I promise, we'll get into some more action. After all, there are still four or five zombies to be introduced! :)**

* * *

Kai, Ken and Ellis didn't come back until dinner. They had a huge bowling-ball bag with them filled with their contents of desire. I raised an eyebrow, looking for their test subject.

"Where's the zombie?" Nick demanded, frowning.

"Kai wouldn't holster his gun," Ken grumbled, hauling the bag from the small boat.

"I told you," Kai sighed, "We couldn't find a cage that wouldn't sink the boat or let the zombie free. We'll head out again tomorrow and just perform our tests out on the streets."

"Y'all are welcome to tag along," Ellis said, grinning. "It was mighty fun out there. I kind of missed shootin' those zombies."

"Enough about that," Ken said, ending the conversation, "what's for dinner? I'm starving!"

"Fish," Nick growled. "And guess what we're having for breakfast, lunch and dinner tomorrow?"

"Well," Rochelle began, rolling her eyes, "when you're stranded on an island, fish does become the special of the day."

"Well, it's disgusting! I much rather eat zombie flesh!" Nick retorted and Mal held back a gag.

Nick ended up not eating anything. I don't blame him, though. I was starting to get sick of eating fish as well.

While the rest of the gang gathered around the campfire, telling more zombie tales, Mal dragged me away from the crowd.

"Ready?" he asked and I shrugged with a smile.

"Whenever you are."

We took off into the night, leaving the others behind. For the first time in a long time, I felt relieved. I didn't have to worry about zombies attacking me during every second of the day, and I didn't have to fear losing my friends.

Mal brought me to the other side of the island and stopped directly at the waters edge. A metal bar barricaded us in, but that didn't seem to bother him. A cool breeze brushed through his hair, and played with his tie. I smiled and joined his side, looking out into the ocean. The full moon was reflected in the crystal clear surface.

"It's beautiful," I commented quietly.

Mal chuckled lightly. I could feel his eyes rest upon me as I continued to examine the ocean. I saw the ocean almost every day in Florida, but it was never as beautiful as this; especially with the full moon.

"I thought you would like it," Mal said softly. "When I came out here and saw it for the first time last night...I thought of you."

A blush crept onto my cheeks, but I didn't move my gaze. Hopefully his overlapping shadow would shield my burning cheeks.

It was silent for a moment, despite the soothing sound of the crashing waves. Mal's gaze fell back onto the ocean and he grinned once more. Slightly, he leaned over the railing, getting an even better view of the masterpiece in front of us.

"Natara," Mal began slowly and he turned towards me. I faced him at the call of my name. He gave me a kind smile. "I know what you've been going through with your fiancee is difficult. I can relate; losing my wife and all. If you ever need someone to talk to or just a shoulder to lean on...I'm here."

I could feel the corners of my mouth twisting into a smile. Without putting much thought into my action, I pulled Mal in a close embrace. He was very warm. I know it sounds stupid, but he was warm in a teddy-bear way. He wrapped his arms around my small frame and held me protectively. We stayed in this position for a few minutes before he pulled away.

"We better get back to the camp sight," he said with that mysterious smile of his.

"Good idea," I replied and was about to take a step away when he stopped me.

"I'll race you."

I laughed lightly. "Oh, you're so on, Fallon!"

And we took off once more, laughing and not having a single care about the current moment.


	13. Chapter 13

**Hey everyone. :)**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-mozzi-girl (Beast!)**  
**Hehe! That's one of the many things that makes Mal so adorable! :D And he is pretty legit. He's my DEAR teacher too. (Do you guys do DEAR? ((Drop Everything And Read?)) ) I think it would be awesome to have Cause of Death themed characters for teachers. You know how awesome it would be to have Mal as a gym coach, Amy as a Computer Tech teacher, Natara as a Criminal Psychology teacher, and Ken could also be a Gym coach, or since he's so good at cooking...:) (He is good at cooking, right? Or was that something I read in Capital Holiday) Hehe, Cause of Death Highschool...I'd totally go there! Anyway...Thank you for reading and reviewing! It means a lot! :D**

**-Maltara101**  
**Daaaang...Lady Anders sounds baaaaaaaad! Nick's a little hormonal...If you haven't noticed. One moment he's warming up to you, the next he's making rude crack about you. Isn't he just a little ray of sunshine? :) Hehe! Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-maltararox21**  
**Yes, I do know why. :)**  
**And oh. my. epic! That is just too cool. Ahaha! Ken the goofy science teacher who looks like Kai...Hmmm. :) My teacher just does random stuff like the Nerf Gun and football. And he came inside today to start the class and he was smiling like a lunatic and he was like. "I just watched two kids collide in the halls." And he goes on about energy transfer. He also owns a raspberry garden. :)**  
**Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**So, I just want to quickly get this intro out of the way. I promise, something exciting will happen soon! I have a twist in mind. And hopefully, we can end this story so we can get started on the Minion sequel.**

**I have a question though, and it is pretty serious. **

**As you guys might know, I do have severe anxiety and today has just been full of anxiety attacks. (Of course, one was just kind of silly. My friend's mom pulled up next to me in her kidnapper styled van and I thought I was done for. Scared the crap out of me.) But the other attacks were caused by this fear I've had since Kindergarten.**

**Next week in school, it's safety week and you know what that means; Fire Drill. I HATE fire drills so much that whenever I think about it, I start to feel sick and my attacks slowly start. So, I need some advice from all of ya'll. Since I can't really escape Safety Week, I want to know what I can possibly do to calm myself and get through without puking or fainting. I know it's a lot to ask for, but if you have any nerve-calming advice that I can use, I would really appreciate it. Thank you!**

**Now that that little rant is out of the way, I am getting a lot of school work now, so again, I might not be able to post as much. Take today, for instance. I had to do a long math sheet, a science fair paper, and I had to piece together a notebook for my film literature class. I have to type up a story now, but it isn't due until Friday, so I might work on it tomorrow, since it is a B-Day, and I have easy classes on B-Day.**

**Thank you all for staying with me. I promise, we'll end the story soon and some important sections are coming up! **

**Please enjoy! :D**

* * *

The next day, Kai, Ken and Ellis brought home two zombies locked in a cage. Kai seemed pretty excited while the others slowly backed away when the cages were set on land.

"I've been waiting twenty-eight years to do this!" Kai exclaimed and peered through the bars. The zombies swiped viciously, but he backed away in time.

"Haha! Loser!" Kai faced us and smiled. "Now, I need a donor for the blood. Who likes needles?"

Everyone shared worried glances. I joined in with them; I mean, honestly...Who wants _Kai _to take their blood? Even the ones who didn't know Kai seemed a little weary about it.

"None of you like needles?" Kai asked, raising an eyebrow. "You're kidding me! I thought..."

"Well you thought incorrectly," Nick hissed. "Nerd."

"Hey," Rochelle cut in. "There's no reason to be mean to Kai. I mean, he is the only one who thought of curing the zombies with _our _blood. I have to admit, that's a great idea."

"Then why don't you volunteer, Ro?" Nick scoffed. "You seem so positive about the plan."

"For Pete's Sake," Ken growled. "I'll do it. Sheesh, you all are a bunch of sissies. What's the harm one needle could...AUGHH!"

Kai jabbed the needle in Ken's forearm and took out as much blood as he was allowed. He yanked the syringe out and smiled. "Well, that was easy. You're a real trooper, Ken." And with that said, Kai skipped away, dragging one of the cages behind him.

Ken gripped his arm and glared towards Kai. Mal approached his friend and held back a smile. "You alright, Ken?"

"If the apocalypse hasn't killed me yet, I doubt a crazy forensic scientist with a needle will," he replied. "Does anyone have a Band-Aid?"

-C.O.D-

Kai was inside Alcatraz for most of the day, working away. When we called him for lunch or dinner, he would refuse and we'd hear the frustrated screams of the zombie, trying to maul the scientist.

It wasn't until the moon was high in the sky when Kai walked out and smiled serenely.

"Did it work?" Louis asked, sitting straighter. We were all sitting around a campfire; one of our new traditions.

"We won't know until morning," Kai reported and took a seat next to Nick.

"What took ya so long," Nick asked, tossing an empty canister of pills in the air and catching it swiftly.

"It's kind of hard to inject a zombie," Kai replied and pulled up his lab-coat sleeve. His arm was decorated in jagged cuts. Blood was still pouring from one of the cuts, but other than that, Kai looked fine.

"It took you around ten hours," Zoey informed and Kai shrugged.

"I wanted to tour the building. Turns out, there are still a lot of corpses inside from zombies that were trapped in some of the cells. It's actually really fascinating! Fred seemed to like it..."

"Fred?" Coach asked and Kai nodded eagerly.

"Fred; our zombie friend. And the one over there," he pointed towards the other zombie that they had captured, "is Jack."

Jack was sleeping soundly, something I had never seen a zombie do before. In fact, he almost looked human; despite the horrible appearance.

"The sooner we find a cure," Ken growled, "the sooner this thing can be over with, and the sooner we can get our team back together." He nudged Mal playfully and the detective smirked.

"Yeah," he replied. "It'll be great to have things back the way they used to be. I miss doing paperwork, believe it or not."

"And I miss getting yelled at by Yeong," Ken sighed softly. "I miss my old life...My old friends..."

"I wonder how Blaise is coping," Mal stated and Ken smiled.

"A girl like her; I'm positive she's doing alright. She does seem like the kind of chick who would be immune."

The two detectives continued reminiscing about their past, mentioning old friends and cases. They talked quietly, almost sadly.

Coach began talking about his family as well. "You know, my Grandma used to ask me if I was a praying man," he said and smiled at the fond memory. "I told her yes...And this was before the whole zombie fiasco...She told me I needed to pray harder, 'cause it ain't working."

"But look how far we are," Zoey said, smiling happily. "Kai is working on a cure, we haven't been bothered by zombies for close to a week now, and we found Mal, Natara, Kai and Ken."

I smiled at the ground. As talk about family and friends arose among the other Carriers, I sat silently. I didn't want to talk to anyone for the moment. I was too busy drinking in the scene.

Zoey and Rochelle smiled and laughed. Nick sat back, half asleep. Coach was telling Kai a story and Ken chuckled lightly at one of Mal's jokes. It's so weird to think I didn't know these guys about two weeks ago and now...

They're my only family left.


	14. Chapter 14

**I can safely say we still have a ways to go before a conclusion is drawn.**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**Hehe! Oh Nick. :D And I completely understand! At my school, the teachers are actually pretty strict about that kind of stuff (Talking in the halls). If you do, they take a point of your Citizenship Grade. (Do you do that at your school?) And I understand with the English teacher. :) And with the Social Studies teacher. :) And Jeremy...He's such a sweetheart. :) And yeah, I bet he's resourceful. There's no one else that's really like him in the series, which is good. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-Oryt**  
**Haha! Kai is a babe. :) And thank you for the advice. I will gladly use it all of next week. :) And I guess I should be grateful, but these teachers are really strict about homework and missing class. Oh well. :) And I know, it's amazing right? I love having him as a teacher! Hehe! Mr. Dixon sounds awesome. Running around, acting like particles and the solar system? Now that is fun! Ooh! Those sound really good, I've never had them before! I am missing out! But I'm serious; he sounds like an awesome teacher. :D Kai teachers are the best, just saying. (Today he gave us raspberries from his garden because we were trying to explain why, four years ago, his raspberry bush kept dying. And when he found a beetle while we were observing the ecosystem outside, it was like he had gotten something mind-blowing for Christmas.) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-mozzi-girl (Beast!)**  
**Oh my gosh, haha! Mal and Ken bromance! Not as funny as the Ken and Kai bromance though. (Unless you count when Mal was talking to Ken at his grave-sight, showing how much he really cared for his best friend.) **  
**Cause of Death High School...That needs to be a fanfiction. It's a shame it doesn't exist, though. :(**  
**And thank you so much for the advice, I really do appreciate it. I'll try the rubber band, since I don't think they'll allow paper bags in class. And yeah, it's not the whole, "Ohmigosh I'm going to die," that really freaks me out. It's just the sudden noise from the alarm that horrifies me. I'm like my dog in a way; loud noises scare the living daylights out of him. But, again, thank you so much for the advice. I'm still a little nervous, but with the few tips I got, I'm sure I'll be okay. :D Thank you, Molleh! It really does mean a lot! :D**

**Alrighty, folks! So just today, I learned that I had Monday off of school. I was bursting with joy because that also meant I could play Cause of Death right as it came out! Unfortunately, it turns out it is Labor Day, which means no episode until Tuesday. I was hoping to get it before Safety Week so I would be a little more...What's the word for it...Relaxed? I don't know. **

**And since I have nothing to do today, I edited this chapter and extended it beyond it's usual Two-Page limit.**

**There is a religious reference, but I quickly move onto a different subject. While I was typing, it came to mind and I thought I would just add it to give a visual? I don't know what the exact word is (My brain is fried!). I'm not kidding. I cannot remember most of this week. And I have to wake up early tomorrow, Sunday, but not Monday. So as of now, my life is undecided. I don't know when I'll be posting fanfiction again. I'm hoping I can start working on part deux of Speak Now on Monday.**

**Before I close, I must ask you all a quick question. Recently, I've been watching this TV show and I'm wondering if I'm not alone. Has anyone seen Here Comes Honey Boo Boo? :D**

**Anyway, thank you everyone for your continued support! Here's a nice, long chapter for y'all! :D**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Sunlight disturbed my slumber this morning. I groaned lightly and tried to cover my eyes. For the longest time, the sky had been a dark grey. I had almost forgot that blue sky did exist.

After my attempts to block out the sun were proved to be completely useless, I sat up and rubbed my eyes. My back ached from sleeping on the concrete with only a sleeping back and a crappy pillow. I looked all around me and noticed I was the first one awake; besides Kai of course, who had disappeared off to most likely work on his zombie cure. I quietly slipped out of my sleeping bag and crept away from my teammates. I only had one destination in mind.

It was still beautiful, even in the early morning sunlight.

I leaned over the railing of the area Mal had taken me to earlier. I found it incredibly easy to organize my thoughts here.

I looked at my reflection in the great pool of water and frowned. I didn't look my best, but I also didn't look that bad. My hair was all knotted up, which I could easily deal with if Mal and the others allowed me a brush. I had left all of my good possessions back in the hotel. It reminded me of a story my dad used to tell me.

"_Around the 1800's, a group of religious folk decided to head west, hoping to find freedom and happiness. Not only were the religious ones at it, but also several miners who wished to find some sort of treasures in California. Each group of people had either a handcart or a covered wagon. Even the rich and mighty had to drag around a handcart from Idaho all the way to California._

"_Since the handcarts or wagons were too small, they had to leave a great number of their possessions behind."_

_I gasped. "That's horrible! I can't imagine going anywhere without my dolls!" Though I was embarrassed to admit it sometimes, I did fancy dolls until the age of 12._

"_Well," my father continued, a smile tugging at his lips, "we won't have to do that in this lifetime. We won't have to leave this house ever again."_

He was wrong...Very wrong.

I wished I still had a lot of my items with me, such as my brush, but I knew it would be difficult carrying around a useless piece of plastic that won't cause as much harm as a gun or pipe bomb did.

I studied my reflection once more and soon, a face appeared over my shoulder. I gasped and turned around, my heart racing. I thought it was a zombie...I was unarmed!

_This is how I die!_

"Whoa," Mal said, holding up his hands with a smirk, "didn't mean to scare you."

"Mal!" I sighed and held my hand over my heart. "Don't sneak up on me!"

"I'll keep it in mind," he replied cooly and leaned against the bar, looking forward.

"Why are you up so early?" I asked. He smiled once more.

"The same goes to you, Miss Williams," he said and shook his head. "You're not exactly 'stealthy'."

"Not...Exactly?"

"You woke me up, but only me. I figured I would find you here. It's a great place to rearrange your brain-thoughts."

How did he know?

"Why are you here?" I asked quietly, blushing lightly.

"I wanted to see if you were okay," he looked towards me. "We are friends, after all."

True. "Do you think Kai's cure worked?" I asked and Mal shrugged.

"Only time will tell."

"And what if it does?"

He stopped. I could tell he hasn't given much thought to this...Or didn't want to. "Well, I can safely say that the apocalypse might end and things will gradually go back to its normal state."

"You'll go back to your station?"

Mal shrugged and smiled. "I've been thinking about it. I've been working there for awhile now and just leaving without a really good cause; it doesn't feel right. Besides, we locked up all of our officers so they wouldn't kill each other. I really do hope it worked." He was silent before continuing. "And you're going back to Miami?"

_No...I want to stay here..._

"Maybe," I responded dully. "I want to see if Shawn's still alive. Maybe we could continue our lives and act as if nothing happened..." That was the wrong thing to say. Mal looked away and sighed heavily.

"Yeah...Forget about everything and everyone," he stated and straightened up. "I should go wake the others." He began to walk off. I couldn't just let him go so easily. I needed to let him know; know that he was one of my best friends in the entire world.

"Mal!" I called, catching his attention. He turned back towards me and raised an eyebrow. My cheeks grew redder and hotter as I stuttered out my train of thought. "I'll never forget you...Ever."

He smiled towards me. It was more caring than just one of those sympathy smiles. "I won't forget you either, Nat," he replied and continued to walk off.

_He is so charming..._

-C.O.D-

It was around noon before Kai burst out the doors, smiling like a mad man. Either the cure worked, or he was going to have to draw more blood.

"Look who's finally out of their dungeon," Nick grunted as he played around with his fish.

"Nick," Zoey said warningly. She then smiled towards Kai. "What's the good news?" she asked.

Kai clapped his hands together and sat down with us. "Okay, I have good news, sort of good news, and sort of bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"

"Good news!" Louis called out, causing Francis and Nick to roll their eyes at their optimistic teammate.

"Alright!" Kai exclaimed, "the good news is...The blood worked! Our zombie friend is slowly changing back into his human state. He actually said something more than just, RAUGHR!"

Ken shook his head and smiled. "Guess my blood is lucky. What's the so-so good news?"

"I was able to radio CEDA from inside the building and they responded. I told them that we had found the cure and we would be more than willing to present it as soon as possible."

"That's even better," Ellis said. "Are they comin'?"

Kai shrugged. "That's the so-so bad news. They said they would be able to come, but it wouldn't be until tomorrow night."

"It's not _that _bad," Ken admitted. "It's only a couple of hours."

"Yeah," Nick groaned, "but it's another night wondering if we're going to get murdered while we sleep, which frankly, I don't like thinking about."

"We're on an island," Francis informed, "and from my past experiences; vampires can't swim."

"For Pete's Sake, Francis," Nick shouted, "they're called Zombies."

"You call them what you want, but to me, they will always be vampires."

"They. Don't. Sparkle." Nick hissed.

Before a fight arose out of the two, Zoey held out her hands and stood up. "Well," she began, "if we're leaving tomorrow, the best we can do is clean up the area so it looks nice and collect all of our items again."

"Sounds good to me," Mal said. "I'll take my team and we'll clean the east and north sides. You guys can take west and south."

And that's basically what we did for the rest of the day; clean Alcatraz.

Around night time, after everyone had fallen asleep, I began wondering what would actually happen if this whole problem was resolved. Would I lose my teammates? Would I ever see any of them again? Will they want to see me again?

Or most importantly...

Am I falling for Mal Fallon?


	15. Chapter 15

**Short, choppy and rushed...'Nough said.**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101  
Same here. Smh. School annoys me. Hehe, Nick. :D Sounds like a GREAT English teacher. Smh. Those people annoy me! I mean, my English teacher is similar, but he's funny about it. Thank you for reviewing and reading! It means a lot to me! :D**

**-bugreid  
Hehe! I still don't know what I should do with Shawn. I'm debating on whether to keep him or not. Haha! I love that part. It's not from the game, but something similar does happen between the two. Francis likes to call the zombies vampires for some reason and every serious guy he says it in front of gets all defensive. Thank you for reading and reviewing! You're fantastic!**

**-mozzi-girl (Beast!)  
Hello! :D And I was surprised when it was actually released today. I guess it's because EA doesn't do Labor Day, but they do MLK day? Or maybe it was because the episode was so good...  
As for that story, I totally would if I had the time, but I'm still working on the Minion sequel and this story, plus Fable of Death. Then there's all the stories I want to start. Let's hope someone does come up with it though. And yay! I'm excited for Capital Holiday's sequel. :D Very excited!  
And does it matter where you put the rubberband? Just wondering. :D  
Thank you for reading, reviewing, and just being so Beastleh! :D**

**-maltararox21  
Hehe! I'm so glad you liked that chapter! :D Thank you so much! :D Keep being awesome, Chica!**

**Alright, just wanted to say I played the Now Airing for this week...Let's just say I'll be thinking about it for like, maybe the rest of this year? That was seriously the BEST episode I have ever played. It made me jump, it made me laugh, it made me fangirl like crazy...It was just SO GOOD! And I'm so glad that we got it today, even though it is a holiday. :D I'm actually fangirling with my friend over the phone, because that's how amazing it was. I think I'm going to go play it again! :D**

**Now that that is out of the way, I guess since the wedding is now out, my Speak Now video might not work. However, if it doesn't, it'll just be an alternate ending and such. I spent five hours just editing, I am not letting it go without a fight. :D**

**So basically, the team just hangs out and waits for the chopper. Next chapter will be a little more...Interesting. :) I do have a few things planned out.**

**Also, I did start writing a lot more of the Minion sequel and I cannot wait to post it. By the time this story is done, the sequel might be finished as well. I'm sorry, but we still have a ways to go with this story. I'll try to end it soon, though. :)**

**Thank you for reading, reviewing, following, and favoriting. I love you guys! :D**

**((Also, I posted a picture of what Zoey looks like on my Tumblr, if you are interested. My Tumblr is Katlanac. Thank you!))**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

"Is everyone packed and ready to go?" Zoey asked the next afternoon, shouldering a backpack filled with extra ammo.

"Everyone but Kai," Ken responded as the scientist ran out to meet with us. Behind him, he was pulling the cage Fred was in. There was something different about this once zombie. Though his teeth were still rotted and his face was pale, his human qualities were beginning to arise. He was sleeping soundly against the metal bars, while the other zombie we had captured screamed in protest and threw his fist against his bar.

"Okey-Dokey," Kai called out. "I'm ready!"

"I guess all we do is wait now," Louis said. "Hey, who wants to play Would You Rather?"

Kai's eyes lit up and he abandoned the cage to join Louis's side like an anxious puppy. "I _love _that game," Kai admitted quickly. "I'll play!"

I raised an eyebrow. "What is that game?" I asked and Kai shot me a glare.

"You don't know what Would You Rather is?" I shook my head and he rolled his eyes. "Would You Rather is probably the best game invented. Come play with us!"

I shrugged. It couldn't be THAT bad, could it?

_Wrong...Very, very wrong!_

About halfway through the game, Zoey admitted that she'd rather eat a cup full of ants than make-out with Kai. Francis said that he would rather jump of a cliff into a pool of melted gold than dirty-dance with Louis. And Mal explained that he would rather challenge Chuck Norris to a fight than get intimate with Zoey, Rochelle, or myself. I understood that, though. I mean, he still talked about his wife a lot.

"That's it," Nick called and shot up from his seat. "I am not choosing between kissing an eel and having someone push over an outhouse when I'm inside. This game is ridiculous."

Louis was in fits of laughter, along with Kai. They seemed to be enjoying this game a lot more than us.

"Alright," Louis said, "we'll skip you." He breathed in deeply and laughed once more.

"Okay! It's Natara's turn," Kai called and thought for a second, a slow smile creeping onto his face. "Would you rather...Lick a fire hydrant that has been used by several dogs or get freaky with Malachi?"

My face darkened with a blush. What kind of question was that? There was only one good answer, but if I said it, Mal would think I'm a creeper. I looked towards Mal, who tried to hide a blush, but was failing.

"Well..." I began slowly. "This game isn't real, please understand that. But if I was absolutely forced to do one of those two things...I would have to choose..."

My answer was drowned out by the sound of the helicopter in the distance. Ellis stood up and cheered happily. "We're saved!"

"I guess we can finish later," Louis said and also stood up. "Let's get moving, my friends."

I didn't dare question Louis. I walked over to where Kai had marked the helicopter's landing area. Mal followed close behind, flanked by the others. He gently pulled me aside and said,

"If there's one thing you should know about Kai, it's that he likes to embarrass others." He shook his head. "That question shouldn't bother you."

"It's not bothering me," I snapped. He looked taken aback by my sudden rudeness, which hurt me inside. I sighed heavily. "I'm sorry, Mal." I had to start talking louder as the helicopter slowly drifted towards the landing pad. "I'm just a little embarrassed, that's all."

Mal smiled slightly. "Okay! As long as you're alright." We were silent for a moment before he spoke up again. "So, what would you rather do?"

I could tell he was playing with me. We both laughed.

There was something very special about Mal Fallon. Very special.


	16. Chapter 16

**It's a nice, long chapter, just for you guys. :D (Special thank you to mozzi-girl, a.k.a The Beast ;) The rubberband trick worked! :D We just had one drill today, and I pulled it back and released and I felt so much better. Thank you!)**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**See, if I was good at actual art, (not just Anime faces) then I'd totally sketch that out. :D Hehe! Glad you enjoyed the little game. :) And I know what Nat would choose too. ;D Thank you for reading and reviewing, Tori! :D**

**-bugreid**  
**Hehe! Oh, Mal is definitely one of a kind. :) I love him to death! Oh, I bet! :D You know, it is the zombie apocalypse; why not? If I was in that situation, Would You Rather would be an awesome way to pass time, ESPECIALLY if you're with Kai; my sweet Forensic Cutie. :) Haha! I'm glad you liked the choices. Believe it or not, those weird answers were really hard to come up with. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-mozzi-girl (The Beast)**  
**Again, Thank you so much! :) And I know, right! Oh my gosh, I have to admit though, those were the BEST episodes I have ever played! (I bought the finale because I read the spoilers and couldn't handle the wait. I'm still fangirling! In fact, I will even more once my friend plays the episode! :D We'll be screeching like little girls on the bus ride to and from school. :D **  
**Also, good luck with your school and your Graphics! :D**  
**And yeah, I guessed on that, but I got it right. Seriously though, it did work! (They're doing the drills in our 2nd period and tomorrow is the one I hate the most; Fire Drill) But when the announcement came over the PA system, I grabbed the rubber band and released it and like I said earlier, I felt so much better and much more calm. Let's hope it works again tomorrow! Thank you so much for like, the third time! I appreciate your constant efforts to help, not just me, but others as well! :D**

**And I'm just curious, but did anyone play the On Demand episode? Six words; Oh. My. GOSH! Best. Episode. Ever! I got it last night and I didn't do any homework or scripture reading because I was so immersed in the game and I was freaking out so much! :D **

**Alrighty, I'll end there. :) Thank you so much for persevering with me! The story will be a little longer than expected because of the plot twist I added, but it'll end soon enough. :)**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

The helicopter landed skillfully. A door slid open and a man jumped out, landing on the helicopter pad with a grin.

"It's so good to be among the living," he announced. I noticed he kept on a small mask, most likely to protect himself. I was surprised he wasn't in a Hazmat suit. Maybe it was to show of his good looks.

His skin was the same color as mine, but just a little darker. He had chocolate-colored eyes and black, slick hair. His smile was absolutely perfect.

"Hello," he said, "my name is Oscar Santos, current CEO of CEDA; the Civil Emergency and Defense Agency. And who are all of you?"

"Well, my name is Zoey," she cut in quickly. "And these are my friends, Francis, Louis, Rochelle, Nick, Ellis, Coach, Mal, Natara, Ken, and Kai." She pointed a finger at each of us as she recited our names.

"Kai...Kalaba, correct?" Oscar asked, stepping towards the Forensic Scientist. "The soon-to-be famous scientist that has rescued man-kind with a single cure?"

"Well, it's not as easy as it sounds," Kai tried to protest, but Oscar brushed him off.

"No matter," he said, "you've contributed a small amount of science that will make a great difference. Now, why don't we all get in the chopper and..."

"Um, are we going to CEDA HQ?" Zoey asked cautiously.

"Of course," Oscar answered, "where else will we go to perform the tests?"

"I knew it," Zoey growled.

"Knew what?" Ken asked and she shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Santos, but we cannot go with you! Francis, Louis and I have been to your HQ before and haven't gotten the nicest of treatments."

Oscar raised an eyebrow. "I thought you three looked familiar. Wasn't there a fourth?"

"He died," Francis muttered, "end of story and none of your business. What Zoey says is right; you guys treated us like animals."

"Well, I can guarantee the tests will be conducted in a more fair manor. After all, if things go wrong this time, we have a cure."

"It isn't that simple though," Kai muttered. "Fred still has zombie traits. He can't remember his past life and all he does is sleep. He's like a baby! He's going to have to relearn almost everything."

"But if it means that no one will be infected anymore," Oscar began, "then it doesn't matter what this cure does. Now, onto the 'copter. Let's get back to head quarters. I had my men create each of you a separate room. As soon as we arrive, however, you're all going to have to take showers while we wash your clothes and free them of any contamination."

"Sounds fair enough," Mal admitted, "but if you try any funny business, please note right now that my friend, Ken and I are detectives and our other friend, Natara works with the FBI."

"Those titles are useless until this cure is in every single infected being." Oscar assisted Kai and pulling the zombie cages onto the helicopter. "After all, I used to be a District Attorney, but I guess it doesn't matter, since there are no legal cases to attend to."

Without further argument, we were placed in the helicopter and we took off into the sky. I looked down at the vanishing streets below. Mobs of infected bashed into each other and fought viciously. A Tank, seeing enough of this, ran through them. He roared loudly; so loudly that it made the helicopter tremble.

Oscar decided to leave the pilot do this his thing and join us. It was cramped enough already, so he just took a seat in the middle.

"I can't believe that weeks after this whole epidemic, there are still survivors that roam the streets. I've only heard of Zoey, Francis, and Louis. And to be honest, Mal and Ken look a little familiar. But you," he pointed towards me. "You're with the Feds?"

I nodded slowly. "Yeah. I _was _with the 'Feds'. But this whole plague kind of effected that."

Oscar nodded slowly. "Understandable. However, you're way too attractive to be with the Bureau."

Those compliments bugged me. It's like they were saying that I was to feminine to handle a firearm or to interrogate criminals. Just because I was 'attractive' doesn't mean I shouldn't be with the FBI.

"Thanks," I muttered and Mal cleared his throat.

"You said Ken and I looked familiar," he cut in. "Where in the world could you have possibly seen us before?"

"Like I said," Oscar grumbled, "I was a District Attorney. To dumb it down a bit, I am the man who is in court shouting 'Objection' and defending my client. Surely you've seen what District Attorneys do on television."

"Now that he mentions it," Ken said, "wasn't he that one murderers lawyer; you know, the one who was the victim at first but soon admitted to bludgeoning his wife after a disagreement?"

Oscar cringed. "Mr. Roberts was not the...Nicest of men I have defended," he grumbled. He pushed himself upwards. "I'm going to go grab some water. Do any of you guys want any?"

A chorus of 'No-Thank You's' arose from the survivors and Oscar disappeared. I sighed in relief and leaned against the wall.

"Well, he's a very handsome fella," Ellis commented, "I'll give him that. But wow, he doesn't stop talking about his fancy job!"

"I don't blame him," Kai said with a grin. "A lot of mysterious things can happen in the Attorney side of life."

"Oh really," Ken sighed, "and what about the Detective side of life, huh?"

Kai opened his mouth to respond but paused. He shook his head and Ken nodded. "That's right, you little nerd."

A low chuckle filled the small compartment, coming from a couple of the other Carriers. Things still hadn't changed, even though we had filled our minds on the fact that we would be in a new place with working showers and toilets. We'd also have something else, besides fish, to eat!

We still liked to insult each other, and loved to poke fun at the others. Nick still loved to pretend to push Ellis out of the helicopter and Francis would do the same to Nick. Then Zoey would start yelling at Nick and Francis for acting like children. This basically went on for an hour and when Oscar came back to report that we had another thirty minutes before we actually arrived at CEDA HQ, Coach, Louis, Rochelle, Mal, Ken, Kai and I groaned loudly as Zoey continued to scold the two, adding in Ellis every so often.

"You're not five, Nick!" she hissed and Nick waved her off.

"Hey Cupcake, you ain't my mother," he growled. "Don't tell me what to do!"

"Don't insult Zoey," both Ellis and Francis shouted and Zoey rubbed her temples.

"I can fight my own battles, guys," she mumbled.

"I was just tryin' to defend ya," Ellis said, hanging his head slightly. "I never meant to take control of your fight, Zoe."

"Hey, Overalls," Nick groaned, "Shut. Up!"

"You 'ain't' his mother, Nicholas," Francis mocked and Nick began throwing several curses and insults towards the biker.

I looked towards Mal, who was clenching his fist so hard, his knuckles were draining of color. He looked more frustrated than that one time a while ago when Kai tried to give a Witch a hug.

"Stop fightin'," Ellis shouted.

"Don't tell me what to do," Francis and Nick responded angrily. If they didn't shut up soon, a fist fight was going to break out and someone would fly out the helicopter.

"Enough!" Mal punched the helicopter body as he yelled this. At that exact same moment, the helicopter began to sputter and lose altitude.

"What the...?" Ken asked, looking around and Rochelle jumped to her feet.

"The 'copter is falling," she said, and soon enough, her prophecy came true. Before, the fall was slow and you could barely feel it. Now, we were all holding onto our seats. Oscar burst through the door, a gun in hand and scratches lining his once-flawless face. Blood caked his fingers and he was panting heavily.

What the heck was happening?!


	17. Chapter 17

**So tired...But I wanted to update! :D**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-bugreid**  
**Yay! I was hoping someone would get it instantly. :D Hehe! Mal is amazing. :) And don't you think that would be awesome; the zombie apocalypse and trying to push each other out of a moving helicopter. :D Thanks for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-Maltara101**  
**Hehe! Personally, I don't think Oscar is that bad. At least he didn't lash out at Natara for, you know...(I don't want to spoil anything for those who haven't played yet.) Hehe! And is that the only spoiler you read, or do you know more, beyond the thing that happens between them. Haha! My friend and I actually played the episode today and she was flipping out through the whole thing. I'll most likely post it on Tumblr, so you can see. :) Call Me Maybe FTW! Haha! And I saw your comment on my Kai Kalaba pic...Yes...You cannot escape. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-mozzi-girl (The Beast!)**  
**:O What shall happen next? :) And again, just another Thank You. We had our Fire Drill today and trust me; I don't want to have another one anytime soon. But with the trick, I felt so much better. :) Thank you again! :D You're such a Beast! :D**

**Since I'm ready to crash, I just wanted to say thank you so much for sticking with this story. I know some of you are anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Minion sequel, but it will not come for awhile. I'm sorry. I do, however, have everything planned out. :D**

**Alrighty, well I hope y'all have a good day, or night and thank you again!**

* * *

"Aren't there any parachutes on this thing?" Ellis called out, looking up towards Oscar.

"No!" he replied. "I had no clue our pilot would get infected!"

"We're done for," Nick growled. "You killed the pilot and Detective Charming just busted the plane."

"No," Oscar began nervously, "when I shot the pilot, I might have accidentally shot the controls too. Detective 'Charming' just has very good timing."

"You idiot!" Ken called out. "Do you even know how to handle a rifle?"

"Of course I do," Oscar replied just as loudly. I could tell we'd hit the ground very soon. So why were the men arguing about their gun skills? "I just got nervous, that's all."

"So, what do we do?" Coach demanded. "Do we jump or stay in the helicopter?"

"What do you think we should do?" Oscar growled and he threw open the helicopter door. "When I give the single, half of us jump out this door, and the other half go through that door."

"Are we going to fit?" Rochelle asked as she threw open the other door.

"There's only one way to find out, Ro," Nick growled and he gripped the side of the 'copter. He looked back towards Oscar, who had Zoey, Kai, Ken, Mal and Louis on his side. "Whenever you're ready!"

Oscar hesitated. I looked out into the open and gasped. It was an open field filled with all sorts of zombies, even ones I have never seen before. Some hid in the tall grass, while others pounced on each other and rolled away into the grass. Either they were killing each other or...

"Jump!" Oscar called and the six of us -Nick, Ellis, Rochelle, Coach, Francis and myself- praying with all of our hearts that we'd land and not break our necks.

Well, from the pain I experienced when I landed face-first into the field, I could tell I was alive. The helicopter crashed behind us and WOOSH! It burst into flames that startled some of the zombies. They scampered away like frightened puppies, leaving just a few to stay frozen in fear.

Every part of me screamed in pain. At least I was still breathing. I tried to push myself up, but my ankle protested and I fell back down. The others seemed to be just fine as they dusted stray grass stalks from their clothes.

"A little help!" I called out and Rochelle was the first to join my side, Nick coming in second place. They hoisted me up and I almost fell back down. "Auugh!" I cried, my left leg collapsing from under me.

"I think you sprained it," Rochelle explained and placed one arm around my shoulder. Nick was my other support as we limped to the other side of the plane, hoping that the others were fine.

Thank goodness that they were.

Mal caught sight of me and my failure and ran over to take Nick's spot.

"Nat," he said, "are you okay?"

"Obviously not," I replied softly, trying not to be too sarcastic. "But I think I'll be fine."

"Not if we don't find safety for the night," Oscar said quickly. "Come on, we're not too far from a Safe-House." He began marching along, but stopped when he noticed that no one was following him.

"Are you insane?" Ellis asked. "We could get killed out there!"

"I left the bag filled with our weapons in the helicopter," Zoey admitted. "We can't kill this guys with just our fists."

"Well, that's what they're doing to us," Oscar said and Coach rolled his eyes.

"Come on, Brother," he said, "you've probably been cooped up this whole time. Listen to the experts who didn't have a whole company to back them up."

"Well then, 'Brother,'" Oscar hissed, "what do we do then?"

"Well, when in doubt, find a hide-out!" Coach placed a hand over his eyes, shielding them from the setting sun. "It looks like there might be an empty farmhouse just a mile away." He glanced towards me. My face was already soaked in sweat from trying to hold back cries of pain. Mal, however, made sure that I didn't put any weight on my bad leg. "Think you can make it, Natara?"

"I can try," I grunted.

"Baby steps," Mal said with a grin. He and Rochelle walked beside me very slowly as the others kept an eye out for the zombies.

There was something off about these Infected. They didn't dare attack, which made me worry. Maybe they were planning something...Something vile and vicious and...

"AHHHHHHHH!"


	18. Chapter 18

**I'm going to try to wrap things up here pretty soon. :) (And sorry about this chapter's length. I am sort of battling Writer's Block)**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-mozzi-girl (The Beast!)**  
**Hehe! Thank you! :D I appreciate your kind words and support. :D :D **

**-Maltara101**  
**Hehe, that would be interesting. In fact, when you get Chapter 8, if you get a few things wrong, there's a pretty funny alternate ending involving Oscar, Kai, Natara, and Mal. :) Well, technically, the pilot was infected, so Oscar had to shoot him. But take notice that Mr. DA got scratched. He might turn into a zombie himself. Hehe, brownie points for Nick being gentlmanly for a few seconds. :) And that was probably one of the best on-the-spot rhymes I have ever come up with. Haha! :D I don't know, you'll have to see who screamed. ;) And thank you again, for reading, reviewing, and being a great fan! :D**

**-bugreid**  
**Thank you for your support! I really appreciate it!**

**Alright, so I have a quick question; (I have probably asked this before, but...)**

**Before September ends, I want to buy Left 4 Dead for my computer. Why? Because I want to do Game Plays. I actually want to guide you guys through the game so you can get a better understanding of this. I also might do Online game plays in the future, but they will be more; Let's joke around and have some fun getting murdered by zombies! :D By myself, it's mainly; Oh. My. Gosh. I heard a spooky noise. Why am I doing this...Why am I doing this...Why...AHHH! Oh wait...That's a box.**

**Yeah, I'm not the bravest soul. :)**

**Thank you for staying with me and I promise we will get to the Minion sequel soon! :D**

**Enjoy! :D**

* * *

The scream startled Mal, Rochelle and I. Since the other group had walked so far ahead, we couldn't see them. Mal gently pushed Rochelle aside and swooped me into his arms, Bridal Style. Despite my growing blush, he didn't seem bothered by his. He took off, making sure Rochelle was still behind us.

"Zoey!" he called out anxiously. "Coach! Louis! Anybody!"

We finally caught up to the group, as they were staring down at Kai, who had most likely fallen onto the ground.

"Why aren't you helping him?" I asked, tightening my grip around Mal's neck. I could tell he was faltering, but he didn't want to let go just yet.

Zoey turned towards me and shook her head. She stepped out of the way.

I thought we'd find Kai's dead corpse, staring up at us with lifeless eyes, his throat torn out, or something among that effect.

Nope.

"Natara!" he called, smiling wildly. A small puppy was on his chest, nibbling on the buttons of his shirt. Mal took this as a moment to set me down and walk towards Kai. He pulled the scientist from his spot and placed him upright.

"I thought you were getting torn apart by zombies!" Mal scolded and whacked Kai upside the head. "That scream was unnecessary!"

Kai took a step away from Mal and gently lifted the puppy into his arms. "But he's so cute!" Kai said and held him out to us. "Come on, Mal! I know you want to pet it!"

Mal shook his head and rejoined my side. "Let's just keep moving. It's almost dark and the zombies tend to come out when there is less lighting."

"Can we keep him?" Kai begged as Zoey sighed heavily.

"Kai, we can hardly feed ourselves..." she informed, but he smiled even wider.

"I don't even eat all of my food! The dog can have it!"

"Kai. Puppy. Down...Now!" Zoey commanded, but Kai shook his head.

"No. He's my dog now and I'm not letting...Ow!" Nick grabbed Kai by the ear and yanked him forward.

"He can keep the freakin' mutt," Nick hissed. "We're losing daylight. Come on!"

We all shared awkward glances as Nick continued to move ahead, Kai's ear still in his firm grip. Rochelle slipped her arm around my shoulders, Mal copying, and she shook her head.

"That boy has no idea what he's getting into..." she commented quietly and Mal shrugged.

"I'm sure Nick will be alright; Kai's not THAT dangerous," he assured, and Rochelle raised an eyebrow.

"I was talking about the nerd himself. If I had kids, I wouldn't trust him to take care of them while I'm out for a few minutes, much less, a tiny puppy."

"Well," I began as we slowly began following behind Nick, Kai, and the others. "If one thing is for sure, I am _not _cleaning after any of them."


	19. Chapter 19

**We're finally getting somewhere! :)**

**I will not be doing review replies, mainly because I am exhausted and I have a few fanfictions to read and some other things to manage before I turn in for the night. But thank you to mozzi-girl, Maltara101, and bugreid for the reviews! I appreciate it a lot! I really do!**

**I'm not going to drag on any further, but I will say this; I am trying to end this as fast as I can. So, if we seem to skip around a lot, I'm sorry, but I'm getting tired of this story and I want to finish it.**

**Thank you again to all of my readers and reviewers! :D**

**Please enjoy, and I'll try to get a chapter out tomorrow. :D**

* * *

I've heard a lot about mirages, especially when I was little. If you're unaware what a mirage is, take a paved road for example. The sun is shining down, creating what seems to be a pool of water a few feet away. When you get closer, the water fades, leaving you with the same hot, dusty, road.

The closer we got to the house in the distance, the further it got. And the further it got, the more zombies we would have to battle. And the more zombies we would have to battle meant an even greater chance of infecting my ankle. And that meant I could die without even becoming a zombie.

"We got to stop," I panted. "Please!"

"We're almost there," Oscar shouted and Francis groaned audibly. The ones who were walking ahead before, had fallen back to guard me and my result of my failure of jumping.

"We've been walking for hours now," Francis growled. "The sun has already set. I say we listen to the one we're actually _protecting _and take a break."

"Sounds good to me," Kai gasped and flopped on the ground, the puppy, whose name was now Tucker, joining him, licking the side of his face. "I'm hungry!"

"Shut it," Nick hissed. "I don't want to hear any whining."

Mal and Rochelle stopped walking and gently guided me to the ground so I could sit. Relief.

"Thank goodness," I muttered, falling onto my back and staring at the sky above. It was beautiful, just like the moon reflected in the ocean back at Alcatraz. I looked for Polaris, my old friend. My father told me that if I was ever in need of guidance, I just had to find my shining star to lead me home. Guidance was what we needed the most right now.

"I'll go search for food," Louis said and Ellis nodded.

"I'll go with 'im. Ya know, just to make sure he don't get eaten and such," he said and Zoey held out her hand.

"There's nothing to eat here, guys," she said. "We're in a barren wasteland with nothing but a puppy and zombies."

"I haven't seen any of those buggers in awhile," Francis pondered aloud. "Maybe we're finally running out of things to kill."

"But that could also mean the cure would be worthless," Kai informed. "Man, this day just sucks. To think, just this morning, we were playing Would You Rather, then we were finally going somewhere safe...But Oscarito shot the pilot and we crashed and Natara sprained her ankle..."

"Would you shut up?" Nick asked, rubbing his temples. "For five minutes...OR MORE!"

"Fighting will get ya know where, Nicholas," Ellis teased and Mal stopped them instantly.

"No...We are not fighting this out! The last time we did, the helicopter fell from the sky!" he growled.

"That was Oscar's fault," Louis stated and Oscar scoffed.

"Well, what do YOU do when the man you trust tries to take you to safety, but gets infected from all of the chemicals and BOOM! He's a zombie! I don't know about you guys, but I have no clue how to drive a helicopter."

"Which reminds me," Nick muttered, "when are you going to get infected, huh? I doubt you're a Carrier. No one who looks or acts like you deserves to be one of us."

Oscar stood up straighter. "That's it," he growled and advanced towards Nick, rolling up his sleeves and getting ready to punch the living daylights out of him. But before he could get even close to the gambler, he tripped and fell face-first into what looked like a cow-patty. Nick burst out laughing.

"You can't even punch someone without hurting yourself!" he stated and Oscar pulled himself up, getting ready to gag because of the brown, muddy substance caked on his face. He brushed it off and looked at the ground, seeing if he could spot what made him trip. His eyes lit up with interest.

"No use trying to blame a zombie corpse," Nick said, shaking his head with a smirk.

"No," Oscar said, "that's not it. Look!"

I sat up, my ankle protesting. I looked to where Oscar was pointing and frowned.

"A sewer entrance?" I asked and Oscar shook his head.

"No," he answered and pointed to a few letters engraved on the entrance. "CEDA. Guys, we're here."


	20. Chapter 20

**Yay! New chapter! :D**

**Again, I am in a hurry, so I cannot respond to reviews, but thank you to Maltara101, mozzi-girl (AKA, The Beast) and bugreid. **

**I am rushing with this, as you can tell near the end. I'm hoping there will be at least five more chapters.**

**Thank you for reading, reviewing, and adding this story to your Favorites. I appreciate it!**

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

With the help of Mal, Ken, and Francis, Oscar tore off the manhole, which revealed a circular pathway, leading down into a cavern of sorts.

"Weird," Zoey said, shaking her head. "I remember CEDA being above ground."

"Well, since the zombie problem has increased and many of our associates have gotten infected," Oscar explained, "within a few weeks, we moved our studies to our underground hide-out."

"Yeah," I said and shook my head. "How on earth do I get down there?"

"Simple," Oscar said. "Allow me to help you." He strolled over to my side and pulled me up. My ankle screamed in protest, but Oscar seemed to ignore it. "Just use your good foot to step on each rung of the ladder. I'll be behind you to..."

"No way," Mal said quickly. "If anyone is going to help Natara, it's me." He walked over and shoved Oscar aside, causing my to lose my balance. Thank goodness Mal has quick reflexes. He gripped my hand before I fell into the CEDA entrance. "I've been fighting by her side for some time now. Like I said; if anyone is helping Natara, it's me."

"I know CEDA better than you do," Oscar growled, "and besides, you're hogging her all to yourself!"

"Ladies," Francis said, "you're both pretty. Can we just get out of the open? Seriously! Safety is just a few steps away and you're preventing us from reaching it."

Mal sighed and looked towards me. "Nat..."

"You don't expect me to choose, do you?" I gasped.

"If it pressures you, then no," Mal replied calmly. "But if you would like to be escorted by Oscar..."

"I'll do it," Ken said, pushing Mal out of the way and grabbing my hand in his rough one. "Because if she chooses you, Mal, Oscar will flip and vice versa. Besides, all she needs to do is just climb down a ladder with someone to make sure she doesn't fall."

"Fair enough," Oscar said. "I'll go down first..." And with that said, Mr. DA began climbing down into CEDA Head Quarters. Mal went second, Ken went third, and I fell into step next to him. It was harder trying to handle on my own, but I eventually made it down, the others following behind me. Mal and Rochelle resumed their hold on me as we trekked through a dimly lit, corridor. It did look like a sewer, minus the awful smell. The corridor was made of mismatching stone bricks, forming a half circular tube. It seemed to go on forever. Minutes quickly turned into half an hour before we actually reached a chrome door.

By this time, I was too exhausted to move any further, so I requested a break. Oscar rolled his eyes, seeing as we were right next to safety, but approved of my suggestion.

"I can carry you, if you want," Mal said quietly, making sure Oscar wouldn't hear. I had to laugh at this because it was such a sweet offer.

"I'm fine," I replied, "I just need a few moments to rest. But thank you, I appreciate the offer."

We were up and moving within five minutes. Oscar pushed open the chrome door which revealed an all white laboratory. Workers wearing HAZMAT suits scampered around, test-tubes in their hands. One wall of the laboratory had several cages built in, containing zombies of all sorts, even some special infected. A Witch's cry rang out and some of the workers gave her dirty looks. The only special infected that were missing were the Boomer, Spitter, and Smoker, most likely because their attacks still work, even caged up. They even had a Tank in the far corner of the room in what looked like indestructible plexi-glass. He threw his fist against his barrier and it ricocheted, catching him in the face. The Tank roared and pain and backed away. Some of the workers smirked.

"Welcome to CEDA," Oscar announced. He reached over to a nearby table and retrieved twelve hospital masks. He handed out each one to us and placed one over his own mouth. "Since we've been introduced to the infection, we need to keep these masks on, or we'll infect the others. Let me go talk with my chief and we'll see if we can get you eleven some rooms to sleep in. Feel free to converse among the other workers." Oscar waved towards us and strolled away. Instantly, Francis, Zoey and Louis tossed their masks aside and rolled their eyes.

"It's not use," Zoey replied. "They'll get infected just by physical contact."

"I hate CEDA," Francis muttered. The rest of us put our masks on, just in case. I wasn't willing to deal with an upset Oscar.

-C.O.D-

It has been a week since our arrival to CEDA. I was able to get medical help for my ankle and I should be out of a cast in a few weeks. We were all able to get separate rooms, mainly because upon our arrival, a few of the workers got infected and had to be placed in containment units.

We're lucky to be alive still. I heard some workers talking about how they should kill us because we're only bringing the infection in. They even want to murder Kai, though he is helping them create a flawless cure.

I'm not worried about it though. I haven't worried much since the apocalypse started. There's no use. However, I have started to worry deeply about two things;

The end of this madness and...

Mal has started coughing.


	21. Chapter 21

**It's my birthday! So here's another chapter! :D**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**Totally awesome indeed! :D Yeah, the CEDA peoples aren't exactly the nicest ones around. And I cannot guarantee that Mal will be okay. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-ZeDancingHobbit**  
**Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-bugreid**  
**Francis and Ken are amazing. :D Mal is such a sweetheart! Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-mozzi-girl (The Beast!)**  
**Aw, really? I try to do my best, so to know that I'm succeeding is awesome! Thank you! Glad you're liking the story! Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-maltararox21**  
**Hehe...Goosies. :D I'm glad you liked that little twist and I'm also glad that you're liking the story. Hehe! Welcome to the Beast Clan, Katbeast. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**Sorry the reviews are rushed today. I have to make a run for the bus stop in a few minutes, but I felt like I needed to update today before I run off for the rest of the day doing random things. :D**

**Thank you all for the support! I promise, we'll end soon! I have an idea in mind for the ending. :D**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

During breakfast the next morning, the eleven of us ate together, secluded from the CEDA workers. We weren't allowed to leave our designated area, which was rather large, to be honest. We had our own rooms, a nicely-furnished kitchen and dining area, weight room, pretty much anything you would find in a 3 million dollar condo. We even had a balcony that led to the outside world, something Mal liked to visit every night. Occasionally, I tagged along.

"How much longer," Mal began, but turned his head sharply and coughed, or more like hacked, into his jacket sleeve. Zoey shared a nervous glance with Francis, who shook his head ever so slightly.

"You okay there, buddy," Ken said, gently slapping his partners back as he finished his coughing fit. Once he was finished, he sat still, breathing slowly.

"Mal..." I began but he stopped me.

"I'm sure it's nothing more than just a cold," he assured with a somewhat kind smile. He pushed his breakfast, which was also very nice, away and stood up. "I'm going to get some fresh air. Don't party too hard without me." He walked away, leaving everyone in an awkward silence.

"I really like that guy," Nick said quietly, "Shame he has to go so quickly."

"Hey," Ellis growled, "don't talk like that. I don't think Malachi is infected. It might just be the change of weather..."

"It's still summer, Ellis," Coach corrected, "but I also think you're right. Mal has survived on the field for quite some time now. The one who really should be getting infected is that Oscar fellow."

I didn't want to hear anymore of their accusations. I grabbed my crutches that were placed against my chair and pushed my plate forward. "I'm going to get some fresh air too," I said quickly and hobbled away, slipping every so often. I had refused to use the crutches, mainly because I felt a little weaker. The crutches couldn't whip out a pistol and kill a zombie; only Mal could do that.

I found Mal where I suspected him to be, on the balcony. A cool breeze swam through his hair and his dazzling blue eyes sparkled in the sunlight. He looked so calm...Serene...

"Hey Nat," he greeted, not even bothering to look towards me. "I was wondering when you would join me."

I felt a warm blush creep onto my cheeks, so I turned away. "Really? Am I that desperate?"

Mal shrugged. A small smile tugged at his lips before he coughed roughly into his sleeve. I cringed. "Sorry," he said quickly. He sighed heavily and shook his head. "It's been one heck of a month, hasn't it," he added quietly.

"It's been that long already?" I asked, limping over to join his side.

Mal nodded and coughed again, harder than the last time. "Sorry," he apologized once more. "I don't mean to frighten you."

"It's fine Mal, really. After all," I looked down at the ground, "it's just a cold..."

Mal nodded gravely. I could tell he knew the truth, but he wanted to be brave about it.

"It's okay to be scared," I muttered, breaking a short silence that had fallen between us. "You don't have to 'man-up' just because society expects you too."

Mal smiled and chuckled. "I am scared," he replied, "but...KOFF KOFF KOFF! Sorry...I am scared but I have someone who makes me feel a thousand times better."

"And who might that be," I asked and his smile grew.

"She's standing beside me."

I turned to look at him just as he faced me. I opened my mouth to reply, but Mal broke into another coughing fit, this one worse than the previous ones. It sounded like he was trying to cough out his lungs. This caused him to drop to his knees and grab cover his mouth with his fist.

"Mal!" I gasped and managed to lean beside him. He couldn't respond. He just kept coughing away. Something was horribly wrong. "Mal...Stay here, I'll go get help!" I struggled to stand up, but I felt his hand grip onto mine. I looked down and he looked up at me. His eyes were bloodshot and his pupils were dilated.

"Mal, you have to let me get help! Kai has a cure!" I insisted, but he didn't release his grip. "Mal..."

"Don't...KOFF...Leave...KOFF...Me!" he begged. What was I to do? He had a death grip around my wrist and he was in need of help and comfort.

"This is not good," I muttered, gently patting his back. "Please let me go get Kai."

The coughing ceased seconds later. Mal was lying on the ground now, heaving heavily. He looked horrible, close to death, even. However, he wasn't a zombie.

"We need to get you to some help," I said but he refused to let go of my hand. If I didn't help him now, he could undergo the transformation. This sudden realization sparked a new dose of adrenaline in my system. My friend, possibly best friend, was going to die if he didn't move this minute. No one else knew we were up here, so it was up to me to save him.

I placed my crutches against the balcony railing and I stood up shakily. When I placed pressure on my ankle, it burned, but that was the last thing I cared about. I struggled to pull Mal to his feet, but I succeeded! I placed his arms around my neck and held tight as I limped slowly, but surely, to the room where we were having breakfast. Hopefully someone would see me and soon, because the pain was so excruciating, blackness was slowly creeping into my vision.


	22. Chapter 22

**Sorry, sorry, sorry! This chapter is certainly not my best. Very...Very rushed...**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-mozzi-girl (The Beast!)**  
**Thank you again for the birthday wishes. :) And especially thank you for enjoying the chapter and leaving such a nice review! It really does mean a lot! :D Thank you for reviewing and reading!**

**-HopelessRomantic1994**  
**Thank you for the birthday wish! :D Aw, thank you! I try my best! :D Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-ZeDancingHobbit**  
**How's a day late? Haha! Thank you!**

**-Maltara101**  
**Hey Tori! :D Aw, thank you! I really do try my best. :) Haha! And to think, you wanted Nick to be stuck in a porta-potty earlier. ;) Hehe! AVPM! Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-bugreid**  
**Thank you! :D You'll have to read on. :) We're actually closer to ending the story now. And I know exactly how Mal feels. -.- I've been coughing non-stop for like the past few days, so I decided to add that into the story for the heck of it. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**THANK YOU FOR ALL THE BIRTHDAY WISHES! :D**

**Okay, so...**

** I have been running to and fro since yesterday trying finish a new video idea, while checking up on Tumblr, while working on a Research paper that is due on Monday, and attempting to write an original story for my Creative Writing class (which I will be posting on fictionpress, if you guys want the link). I'm sorry I've been slacking off a bit. (Yeah, I know it's only been one day, but if I don't post every day, I feel like things are out of place and...It's a compulsive thing, really.) So I finally had some extra time to write this morning and I managed to finish this chapter and start a new one, which I will try to continue tomorrow.**

**Please bear with me! We are so close to finishing! I want to get this story out of the way ASAP so we can begin the sequel and so I can take a much needed break.**

**Once more I apologize for the chapter's quality. I want to do my best, but things have just been a little hectic. I also have 2 300-word reports due by next Monday as well and that's weighing me down. And don't get me started on Seminary -.-' **

**I just want to take up a few seconds to thank those who are reading this story. If you have reached this point, that means you haven't quit on me yet and that means a lot; this being said by an amateur writer. :) You guys are amazing!**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

Kai walked out of an examination room, pulling off his latex gloves. I caught a glimpse of Mal resting on an operating table. He was hooked up to all kinds of machines and I had to admit...I was terrified. The door closed and I looked back towards Kai. He looked a little grim, but I could tell he had good news.

"He's alright," he announced and I sighed. Behind me were the other survivors and Oscar. They let out a sigh of relief as well and Nick even chuckled.

"There's just no killin' that man, is there?" he asked and I smiled. No, there really wasn't.

"However," Kai continued, "the infection is in his system and is having an effect on his body. We're going to need a lot of blood for..."

"I'll do it," I said quickly. Kai stopped and looked towards me, as well as everyone else. I could tell Zoey was smiling at my offer.

"Are you sure?" Ken asked, rubbing his arm in remembrance. "That needle hurts..."

"Positive," I replied. "I'm not losing another friend..."

Silence. Why do I have a talent of creating it?

"Are you really sure though, Natara?" Kai asked. "You might be put on bed-rest, from loss of blood, for a few days."

I nodded firmly and Kai sighed heavily. "Alright, but I warned you..."

Kai led me into a separate examination room and pulled out three medium-sized syringes. He grabbed a small cloth that had been dipped in alcohol and cleaned each needle before sticking it into my arm.

"Ow!" I muttered and bit my lower lip. This hurt a lot more than I thought it would. He drained the blood from my arm into the syringe and pulled it out. Just seeing all of that red liquid made my head spin.

"We can stop now," Kai said, "and I can get Zoe or Rochelle to..."

"Keep going," I interrupted. "Please."

Kai shrugged and stuck the second needle into my arm. I squeaked, but held back my cry. More blood. By now, I felt ready to pass out.

He pulled that needle out and entered the third one. I didn't exactly know if this was safe or not. It already looked like he had obtained a cup of my blood. The final syringe was pulled out and he grabbed a large bandage and wrapped up my arm.

"Let's take you to your room so you can lie down for a bit. I'll make sure this blood gets to Mal." He helped me stand up and we slowly made it to my room. As soon as I hit the bed, my eyes snapped shut and I was in a wonderful dreamland where the zombie apocalypse didn't exist and where Mal, the others, and I were vacationing in tropical Hawaii.

-C.O.D-

I woke up suddenly. I glanced at my clock and realized I had been asleep for nearly ten hours. I gasped and struggled to sit up. It was already night-time and most of the survivors would be asleep. This would be the perfect time to pay a visit to Mal.

I limped quietly through the halls and down to where I thought Mal's room was. I pushed open the door and grinned when I saw him, looking up at the ceiling. The color had returned to his face and he actually appeared to be smiling.

"Mal!" I said quietly and he turned towards me.

"Natara!" he exclaimed, but then frowned. "Hey, aren't you supposed to be resting? Kai told me you had a lot of blood taken out..."

"I wanted to see how you were feeling," I replied solemnly. "Please don't tell Kai. It's just...I...I was scared."

Mal smiled, amused by my sudden confession. "Scared? Natara Williams?"

I shrugged. "Yeah...Natara Williams was frightened. I thought I was going to lose you." I blushed wildly. _Stupid, Natara! You don't just go saying that to a guy you met a little more than a month ago!_

Mal chuckled and resumed looking at the ceiling. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, I was terrified; terrified that I would turn and hurt you."

I smiled slightly and slipped into the room. I was going to be here for awhile.

"But thanks to you," Mal continued, "that's not happening. In fact, Kai told me tomorrow, if I look and feel better, we're going to go send out the Cure and hopefully restore life into the U.S.A and any other countries that had been effected by the disease; starting in Miami, Florida."

_Shawn..._

"Well...Things will finally be going back to normal," I muttered and I could feel the loss of blood kicking in. The world spun around me and I doubled over, catching my knees and breathing heavily. Mal sat up, alarmed.

"You need to lie down," he said. He jumped out of his bed, which surprised me, and rushed over to my side. He knelt beside me and that awful memory of him coughing and nearly turning flashed back to me. Was I going to be the victim this time?

Without further hesitation, Mal swooped me into his arms and carried me to his bed. If I didn't know better, I would guess that this night would most likely end in disaster. He placed me where he had been lying and draped a blanket over me.

"You can't ignore the doctor's orders," Mal whispered quietly. His voice sent shivers down my spine. "Get some sleep."

"What about you?" I asked and he smiled kindly.

"I'll be fine," he replied calmly.

Reality began to fade as sleep set in. The last thing I saw was Mal smiling above me.

The last thing I heard was his calming voice. "You saved my life, this is the least I can do."

The last thing I felt were his soft lips brushing against my cheek.


	23. Chapter 23

**Remember that puppy Kai found? Yeah, I didn't. So let's just pretend CEDA took it, 'kay? **

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-bugreid**  
**You're not the first one to start liking Nick. :) And he really does have that effect in the game. For the first few chapters, you loathe him and his cocky attitude...Then you start to like him when his sweet side comes out. :) Offering blood = Most romantic thing I could think of at the moment! :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-Maltara101**  
**Haha! :D I'm glad we're on the same page now with Nicholas. :) Aww! :D Hehe! Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-maltararox21**  
**OH MY GOSH! THANK YOU! Haha! I didn't think this chapter would get as much love as it did. :) Hehe! I'm so glad you loved this chapter! :D I really appreciate your kind comments. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-HopelessRomantic1994**  
**Lucky! I still look forward to the day when I have a Cause of Death dream and remember it. :) Kai did make a short appearance in my dream last night, though. Apparently, I was watching a movie in a theater and he did a voice over for the: This preview has been rated..." Something like that. Yay! I'm glad you're liking it! Thank you! :D**

**-mozzi-girl (The Beast!)**  
**Aww! Molleh! Thank you! :D I really do appreciate that! :D And I have to tell you something; I was in my Creative Writing class yesterday and I had to read a short passage from an original story I had written and it ended with, "Well, not everyone can say they were raised by dragons." or something like that and the seventh graders (because that's all who really joined the class, including three other 9th graders besides myself) were like, "Oh my gosh...I love how you ended that section!" and when they said that, I thought of what you said about my little endings and I couldn't help but smile and reply with, "Really? My British friend says that too!" and...Well, there really isn't a point to this. ^^' Haha! Thank you so much! :D**

**Okay, I don't have anything negative to say besides the beginning starts off a little slowly. I actually really like the ending on this chapter.**

**Again, I'm announcing that I am going to start doing a gameplay for L4D, mainly just to clear things up. I might be getting the game sometime next week or so. **

**Also, I do have to start working on homework now, since I've procrastinated long enough. My updates may be a little slower.**

**But thank you to everyone who keeps this story strong by reading it! I really do appreciate your dedication! :D**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

When I woke up the next morning, I saw Mal sleeping soundly in a chair. I was confused at first, wondering where I was. This wasn't my room...Was it?

The door creaked open and Kai peeked his head through. "Maligator," he called, "you awake?" When I didn't respond, he pulled the door wide opened and his eyes fell upon me. I blushed heavily and the realization of what happened last night dawned upon me. I was sleeping in Mal's bed. I almost fainted last night and Mal kissed my cheek. Now, he sat in a chair in the far corner of the room, watching over me.

"Natara?" Kai gasped. "What are you doing here?"

"I...Um...It's kind of..." I began, but a low yawn filled the room. I looked over to Mal who smiled as he stretched his arms.

"Good morning, Natara," Mal began and then nodded towards Kai. "And you."

"Mal, what is Natara doing in your room?" Kai asked and I hid my face. This was beyond humiliating. Knowing Kai, he'd probably go around and spread rumors of how he found me in Mal's bed. He might even add that Mal had joined me.

"She came for a visit last night," Mal said with a smile. "And I told her since she wasn't allowed to leave her bed, that she would have to use mine for the night. I'll move her back as soon as possible."

"Okay..." Kai said and shrugged. "Alright! Breakfast starts in a few minutes. I'll see you," he pointed to Mal, "down there and I'll hope to see you," he pointed to me, "back in your own bed."

Mal stood up and nodded. "Alright Kai." He began pushing the forensic scientist back into the hallway. "I'll see you in a few." When he managed to get Kai out of the room, he shut the door and turned to me. I expected him to explode, maybe even cuss me out. However, he just burst into laughter.

"What's so funny?" I asked and he laughed some more.

"That was awesome!" he exclaimed.

"Kai finding me in your room?" I asked, raising an eyebrow and Mal nodded. "How is that funny? He thinks I slept with you!"

Mal just smiled. "Come on, Nat. I'll carry you to your room. We can talk there." No. I wanted to know why he thought the fact that Kai has the wrong idea about Mal and I. Before I could even open my mouth to protest, he swooped me up into his arms like he's done before.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked.

"Because you kind of suck at walking," he replied with a smirk and I hit his chest.

"No," I growled, "why are you being so...Ugh!"

Mal raised an eyebrow. "Being so, Ugh?"

"You know I'm engaged."

"Yeah, and..."

"You keep doing these charming things! You know what that does to a girl's emotions; even if they're already sworn to someone else? IT SCREWS WITH THEM!"

Mal chuckled and kicked open my door. "Natara, I'm just carrying you into your room." He strolled over to my bed and gently set me down. "I'll bring you your breakfast, okay? Just stay down."

-C.O.D-

Mal sat across from me, Zoey and Ellis flanking his sides. I quietly cut at a piece of sausage as Ellis rambled on and on about his mysterious friend, Keith. The events that happened this morning still weighing heavily in my mind.

"One time," he said, his mouth partially full of food, "my buddy Keith and I decided to make home-made fireworks and watch them explode from the roof of his house. Everything was going great until one of the fireworks sparked and WOOSH!" Ellis threw his hands in the air for effect, knocking his utensils to the ground. "The whole roof ignited! I jumped down and broke my wrist, but Keith told me that he could put out the flames, so he stayed up there."

"Oh my..." Zoey muttered. "What happened next?"

"Well, after Keith received third-degree burns over 60% of his body, he jumped down. His mom made us clean the mess afterwards. Oh, and then there was this one time where Keith and I decided to have lawn-mower races and Keith forgot that the mowers had blades and..."

"I'm surprised you two are still alive," Mal commented. "I've done some outrageous things in my lifetime, but your stories ultimately top mine."

Ellis smirked. "Well, when you have a pal like Keith..."

The door creaked open and Oscar poked his head through. The four of us fell silent as we looked upon him.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," he asked and Mal stood up.

"Nothing at all," he said with a smile. "What's up, Mr. DA?"

Oscar shook his head at the pointless nickname and began talking once more. "I'm sure you guys know that we've been working on the cure now for awhile."

Mal nodded. "Yup! I'm sure we do."

"And obviously, when Mal had the disease in his system and we injected the cure, the infection no longer had an effect on him," Oscar continued. There was an edge to his voice suggesting that this conversation was starting to teeter on the line of being exciting to being heart-breaking. It was like someone telling their son or daughter that their grandma, after several months of battling cancer, has finally passed. You're happy that she no longer suffers, but you're upset that you've lost your family member.

"I clearly remember," Mal added and Ellis smirked.

"So, why do you sound like Christmas has been canceled?" he asked. He then stopped and his eyes widened. "Christmas hasn't been canceled...Right?"

"I can assure you that Christmas will continue on this year," Oscar said with a nod, "but I can also assure you that the apocalypse has come to an end."

"Come to an end?" Zoey asked, now taking her turn to stand up. "As in...We can go home?"

Oscar nodded. "We have already sent some men out to administer the cure to see if it'll work most of the time. Then, we're protecting the ones who get cured from the infected ones. Of course, we won't be able to save the ones you guys have beheaded, but we will be able to rescue ones that haven't been effected by bullets or machetes."

Silence. It was awkward and cold, something I didn't like. Zoey glanced towards Ellis, who shared the look. He frowned and then leaned back in his chair. He shook his head slowly and very quietly, added,

"This is _worse _than Christmas getting canceled."


	24. Chapter 24

**It's very cheesy, but I think that's what pulls this chapter together. :)**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-NiekaWow**  
**Well then, thank you for trying this story out! :D I'm glad you've been liking the idea of it! And I do have to give credit to Valve fir actually creating the characters; Zoey, Ellis, Rochelle, Coach, Nick, Louis, Francis, and Bill. Hehe, Zollis. I think that might be their pairing name; either that or Zellis. Thank you again, for trying this out and for reviewing! I appreciate it!:D**

**-mozzi-girl (The Beast!)**  
**Aww! Thank you! And yes, yes you did tell me so. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-bugreid**  
**Oh Mal. :) And gee, I don't know what to think either. I've really gotten attached to this story over the month I've been writing it. In fact, I don't even know how to end it. -.-' Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-Maltara101**  
**Hehe! Ellis was like, my Mal, before I played Cause of Death. He's such a sweetheart! :) And he's good looking too. When I do the gameplay, I'll introduce him. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**I know we're all ready to end this story, but I am still deciding on how to end it. Also, I do have A LOT of homework to do today and possibly leading to tomorrow. I also have some art that I want to finish up before Monday starts. And I am thinking of posting an original story and most of my writing assignments on Fictionpress. When that happens, I'll alert you guys. I might get a different Pen Name for fictionpress as well, since I don't want my teacher looking at my fangirling fanfiction. She already thinks I'm weird enough because I write about serial killers. -.-'**

**ALSO! I just ordered Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 for my computer. It should come sometime next week. And if my computer does not work well with it, then I will have to move it to my upstairs computer, which may be a problem. I also need to find a mouse that I can connect to my laptop. Being a nerdy gamer is fantastic. :)**

**I also ordered Sims 2 University, so expect more music videos to come from that. (I might be giving my base game to my CoD friend, and she might begin making her own videos as well.)**

**I got a bunch of other junk as well, including an awesome iPod Tripod (that is so fun to say!) I've wanted to start my own video vlog, so that'll be useful for doing that. If you guys have any suggestions for video ideas for a weekly video vlog, please feel free to drop them in a review or PM. I am totally up to any challenges as well. :) (I already did the Cinnamon challenge though, and I am not doing the Salt and Ice challenge.) **

**Enough about that madness...**

**Please enjoy! :D**

* * *

"Okay," Mal said, rubbing his hands together, "let's try this again!" He gripped my hand firmly in his and pulled me up. For the past ten minutes, I've been trying to stand up without getting dizzy; ultimately I was failing.

"Augh!" I groaned as I fell back onto the bed, my vision spinning. "This is so stupid!"

Mal smiled lightly. "Oh come on," he said and gripped my hand again. He gave it a comforting squeeze. "My gut tells me that this will be the lucky time."

Yeah, Mal's gut has told him lots of things...And I do mean LOTS of things.

I sighed and placed my hands on the edge of my bed. "Alright," I growled, "but if it fails, we're stealing a wheelchair, alright?"

Mal nodded and he pulled me up once more. I placed my hand on his shoulder, steadying myself. When I didn't collapse, I smiled wildly. "No way!" I shouted and I threw my head back and laughed.

Mal's gut was always right.

-C.O.D-

"Will we ever see ya again?" Ellis asked, leaning against the edge of the plane door. Oscar shrugged.

"Well, I sure hope so. Maybe we'll meet up again one day," he replied with his cheeky grin. Oscar had decided to stick with CEDA for a little longer, as well as Kai. We were hoping we could meet up again in San Francisco, but we all had different plans.

Ellis just asked Zoey to marry him today and she said yes. Apparently, they had a little thing going on behind the scenes and didn't announce anything until this morning over breakfast; while Mal and I were trying to get me standing again.

Ellis wanted to move back to Georgia with Zoey, who agreed without further question. She didn't have anyone back in Pennsylvania. Even Francis and Louis decided to stay with her so they could all be together. Nick had decided he would head back to Vegas to check up on his ex-wife. (Yeah, we were all shocked by this subtle announcement.) He explained that after all the crap he's been through, he would need someone like her to get him back into shape. He even said that he had a seven-year old daughter, whom he wouldn't mind seeing again.

Rochelle and Coach had also decided to stay in Georgia and start up a new life; not together, but always within walking distance.

Mal and Ken wished to go back to San Francisco and rescue their friends there.

Then there was me.

I was going to be the first one to get dropped off. I was leaving the others to go back to Miami and look for Shawn. I was truly alone on this one.

We waved towards Oscar, Kai, and the other CEDA officials as the plane began to roll away and take to the skies. My eyes were fixed on the window, examining the disappearing sight below. Though it was only a barren field, I felt like I was leaving something great behind; a home.

The flight wasn't insanely long, in fact, it was rather quick. We were in Miami in less than an hour. The pilot turned off the plane and the survivors glanced towards me. I gripped the edge of my seat and pushed myself up. How I was going to survive without these guys; I had no frikkin clue.

"Well," I said and bit my lower lip. Most of the survivors decided to look back down at their clasped hands. Another awkward silence fell upon us. Zoey was the first to get out of her seat.

"Natara," she muttered and she approached me. She pulled me into a tight hug, which I returned weakly. "We'll miss you. You need to come and visit sometime; maybe with your fiancee."

"Yeah..." Nick said, also standing up. This started a 'revolution' among the others. They slowly stood up and formed a line, each giving me a meaningful hug and throwing in some well-wishes. Mal was the last one in the line and when he stood before me, he hesitated.

"Natara..." he began slowly. He shook his head, unable to find the words.

"Thank you," I said and threw my arms around his neck. "You've done more than just rescue me from a hotel. So much more..."

Mal didn't respond, only place his chin on my shoulder and sighed heavily.

"Come visit sometime, alright?" I added quickly. "I'm sure Shawn would like to meet you and the others."

He pulled away and nodded. "Good luck out there, Nat," he finally said and nodded with a sad smile.

This is it. I descended out of the plane and waved to the others. Though still dizzy from the blood-loss, I was sure I was going to be okay.

I skimmed over the city, spotting the large hotel that Shawn and I had been staying in before the insanity. I took a deep breath and began making my way towards the building, limping with every step.

I recalled everything that happened to me; Running away from Miami, getting trapped in a hotel, but only to be rescued by Mal, Ken and Kai. Those three have done nothing but make sure I lived to tell the tale. I hope I gave the favor back.

I started to think of the new life I was going to have if I found Shawn. We'd probably get married and maybe have a kid of our own. Of course, I was planning to visit Mal and the others from time-to-time. Maybe I would quit my job...Or maybe I would gain a new position.

If I found Shawn dead, like bullet-wound dead, then I would have no where to go. I'd be stuck in Miami until the cure settled in. I'd have no one again, and that's what I was most afraid of.

The plane took off behind me and I cringed. I could have jumped back on and forgot about my old life. I could have taken a step into a new and possibly better life than I had before. Tears rolled down my cheeks and I cursed my stupidity.

"Natara, wait!" a voice called out and I jumped. I flipped around and saw Mal running in my direction. As soon as he got close enough, he pulled me into a tighter hug than the one we had shared before. "I can't let you go alone," he whispered into my ear. "None of us could."

_None of us?_

Behind Mal were the other survivors, smiling brightly. Even Nick had joined them.

"Whether you like it or not, Princess," he called out, "you're a part of our family now."

I laughed, a weight being lifted off my shoulders. I had a family; a family that was made up of people who weren't all alike. Some were bigger than others and some were a little more rude, but it was a family.

"I love you guys!" I called out and they charged in for a group hug.

_This was my family._


	25. Chapter 25

**It's the last real chapter. Tomorrow, I'll be posting the epilogue and then after, on Wednesday, I'll be taking a quick break, and possibly Thursday as well. However, the Left 4 Dead games I ordered should be here by then, so I'll take some time to set that up for the gameplay, which I will be doing on Saturday if I have nothing else to do. Then, we can finally start the Minion Sequel! :D (By the way, this chapter is probably just as 'cheesy' as the last one. It's a little rushed too, but I still favor it among the others. :) )**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-Maltara101**  
**Aww! I'm glad you've been liking the story. :D Thank you, it means a lot! :D She is a little weird, but she is one of my favorite teachers, next to Kai, of course. ;) And yay! Someone's excited for the gameplay! I'm excited to fail majorly because I've never played those kind of games on a computer before. -.- And if I do manage to play online, that'll be awesome. Then a bunch of other people can see me fail. :) I love Sims too! I can't wait to start making videos again! :D The tripod I got was actually really cheap. I think it was around $6 total, including shipping and everything. I haven't received it yet, but hopefully I'll get it soon. And Rants are good, but I don't know what to talk about. And yes, my CoD friend is Kensley. ;) Hehe! Zellis is amazing. Before, I actually shipped Zoey/Louis because my brother told me that they were a couple when I first started playing. But they never were. Smh. And Nick is a babe. Told you that you'd come to like him. ;) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-ZeDancingHobbit**  
**Hopefully not too cheesy? :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-bugreid**  
**Aw thank you! :D I was hoping that chapter wasn't too insane with cheesiness! :D Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-mozzi-girl (Such. A. Beast!)**  
**Haha! Thank you so much! I'm so glad you liked that chapter! :D And I actually listened to it and you're so right! :D Thank you for sharing, reading, and reviewing! :D**

**-NiekaWow**  
**Well, either way, I'm glad you started reading. :) That would be awesome, especially if they were good-lookin'; just saying. :) Yay! :D And thank you so much! I really appreciate getting comments like that, especially on here because...Well there's a lot of reasons, but I'll just leave it as; you guys know more about me than most people I have talked to in person. :) Thank you again! :D**

**There's really nothing left to say. I hope you all have a good rest of the week! :D**

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

Francis kicked the door open of a quiet hotel room. He held out his pistol and examined the room. "Uh...Shane, where are you?" he asked.

"It's Shawn," I corrected.

"His name could be Sally, for all I care," Francis muttered and a low groan came from the corner of the room. Francis cocked his pistol and looked towards the source of the noise.

Pale green skin, dark, emotionless eyes, and razor sharp teeth coated in a thin layer of blood. He had gashes all over his body, most likely self-inflicted. He groaned louder, sensing our had his hair...His structure...Even his eyes. He slowly pushed himself to his feet and glared at us.

"Ready?" Francis asked and I nodded.

I took a step behind him and looked back toward the entrance of the door. The others decided to stay in the hallway and watch our backs. Mal nodded towards me with a kind smile and I turned back towards Francis.

Shawn began to walk towards us, now roaring out in gibberish. He swiped his hand towards Francis, who dodged it and pistol-whipped him across the head. Shawn shrieked and fell backwards, giving Francis the chance to tackle him down.

"Nat," Mal called and threw a pair of handcuffs in my direction. I caught them and returned to Francis, who accepted the small gift gratefully. He cuffed Shawn's hands behind his back and pulled him upwards.

"Nice boyfriend you got here," he said. "Doesn't even put up a fight."

"Hey!" I growled.

"I'm just joking. Must be a _joy _in the bedroom. Or is Mal better?"

I blushed heavily. "Let's just go before some other zombies show up."

-C.O.D-

It wasn't until a few days later, Shawn started showing results of recovering. He was able to slowly sit up and eat on his own, which sent a feeling of relief through me.

However, it was like his whole memory had been erased. He needed to relearn nearly everything. We had Nick teach him how to hold a spoon in his hand, while Rochelle gently guided it to his mouth. Mal taught him how to walk and Ken taught him how to talk. We contacted Kai, informing him of the side effects and he reported that he would be working on a medicine to help combat the memory loss.

The worst part of it all; Shawn had forgotten me.

I had volunteered to stay by his side both day and night, hoping to trigger a memory of us. Nothing. He just smiled towards me and complimented the way I looked. This went on for a few days before I finally cracked and left the hotel to find a nice bench to sit on.

All around us, there were CEDA specialists running to and fro, healing and teaching the recovering infected. Everything was getting cleaned up and it almost looked normal.

Mal joined me shortly after my subtle freak out and said nothing for a few minutes. Then, he turned to me and frowned lightly.

"You know," he said, "when I was a little younger than the age I am now, possibly ten years ago, my mother was sent to the hospital for cancer treatment."

"Mal..." I muttered, but he didn't stop.

"I loved her with all of my heart," he continued. "She was my best friend and the one person I could turn to, especially after my father was incarcerated. She kind of lost the will to move on once he was thrown into prison, and her chances of recovering were very slim.

"It was December 16th, if I'm recalling it correctly. Cynthia, my sister, and I decided to pay her a visit, knowing it might be her last. When we got there, my mom gave us a quizzical look and started rambling on about her kids; Us. She recalled some of our greatest memories together, but she still didn't know who Cynthia and I were.

"It broke my heart seeing her like that. She didn't even tell us that she loved us before she died. But she did say, 'I wish my kids could see me now; my suffering is gone. I can finally live again!'" Mal paused. I could tell he was fighting back the tears. "I know how you're feeling about Shawn right now. The love of your life can't even remember your warm embrace." He placed his hand on mine and I looked towards him. He gave me a empathetic smile and I leaned into him, taking in his comforting warmth.

"You'll be alright, Natara," he said. "I mean, you just finished living through the zombie apocalypse. You're pretty much indestructible."

"I don't know about that," I said, biting my lower lip. Why, of all moments, did my mind finally make the connections?

_Shawn will never get better and you know this._

_Your heart doesn't belong to Shawn anymore. He doesn't even remember the day you two met. It's time for him, as well as yourself, to move on._

_This man sitting next to you, the one you've been leaning on for strength since the moment you met, he's much more than just a war-companion; so much more. This man just might be the one._

"You are indestructible," Mal commented and laughed lightly.

"Not when it comes to falling in love," I replied quietly. He fell into silence and looked down at the ground.

_Great, Natara. Now what are you going to do; announce that you're the daughter of one of the richest men in the world? Better make this moment less awkward..._

"Mal," I began, "I've got something to ask you."

"Sure," he replied, and his eyes met mine once more.

"Do you ever think of settling down? You know; finding your true love?"

He was quiet as he tried to come up with an answer. "Well, sure. A lot of people do. I do want a companion in marriage that will actually stay faithful, but I've just given up hope on it."

"Do you think...We could try it out?"

He sent me a quizzical look. "We, as in, Us...Together?" I nodded slowly and he looked off into the distance. Slowly, a smile began to form upon his lips. "I don't see why not." He faced me once more and I smiled back.

It happened all too quickly. Soon enough, we were in each others arms and his lips were pressed against mine in a passionate kiss. It felt like I had finally released a secret that has been bothering me for some time; and I have.

_I am Natara Williams and I am a Carrier. I never thought I could survive this apocalypse, especially without my ex-fiancee by my side. But then I met Mal, Kai, Ken, Zoey, Francis, Louis, Rochelle, Ellis, Nick and Coach. Together, we formed a team and tore through the streets, eventually finding a cure and forming a family. Though we experienced some tough tragedies and some spats here and there, we had each others. I couldn't have wished for a better team._

_And I have never been happier._


	26. Epilogue

**I gave up on trying to make this sound nicer and fit together. I'm just glad that it's over, but this was a fun ride. :)**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-NiekaWow**  
**Haha! Thank you! I don't blame you if you didn't like Shawn. I was okay with him until he went all psycho after the breakup. And I completely, 100% agree with you. Natara is better off with Mal, and I'm so glad the Cause of Death workers finally gave us that. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing! :D**

**-mozzi-girl (The Beast!)**  
**Haha! I read that line wrong; the "My Maltara feels are going nuts." You can probably guess what my dyslexic brain came up with. :) I am absolutely honored! :D Thank you so much for liking the story; it means a lot. :) And yes, it is. I'm thinking of possibly a CoD sims remake? Haha! I think I have some zombie Sims buried underneath all of my customize items. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-Maltara101**  
**Thank you! And I never actually thought of that. :) Maybe they're related. :) A lot of good things are happening, aren't they? Don't forget the gameplay! (If my laptop isn't broken by then. *sighs*) Yeah, I thought they would, so I wrote like ten fanfics about them and then I learned about my Hottie Boom Bottie, Ellis. Ooh! He is good looking. I'll have to show you when I do the Left 4 Dead 2 gameplay. Amazon always has cheap stuff. That's where I get everything electronical. :) I got my laptop there, my iPod 4th gen, my charger, and now a bunch of other cool things. I feel like such a nerd! :D And that's a good rant idea. I'll think about it. :) Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**-ZeDancingHobbit**  
**I know, it is kind of sad. But we have the Minion sequel coming up! :D Thank you for reading, reviewing, and staying with this story as long as you did. It really does mean a lot to me. :)**

**-bugreid**  
**Aww! Thank you! :D Haha! I'm not THAT cruel. :) Hehe! Maltara moments are amazing! And I'm so glad you liked my attempt. I, personally, think I could've done better, but a lot of people liked it, so Mission Accomplished! :D Haha! That's my plan too! Or, (I don't think I'm allowed to tell this but...) find my Grandpa because he has the money and the supplies, and head to Michigan where my uncle and aunt live on a ranch and defend ourselves from there. In fact, when I do the L4D gameplay, there is a level that looks very close to my aunt and uncles house. :) Hehe! I'm glad I was successful in making Nick likable. :D Thank you for reading and reviewing! It really does mean a lot!**

**Alright, I need to hurry because my bus comes in twenty minutes and I'm still not fully ready.**

**I apologize for my delay in writing! I accidentally spilled coke all over the keyboard and I had to take off every key and clean each one separately. The keys are working again, thank goodness, but something else on my laptop broke and now I need to deal with that. However, it will not delay my writing. :)**

**Today or tomorrow, my first shipment of stuff is coming and if Left 4 Dead comes; GREAT! I won't actually start the gameplay until I get the headset I'm supposed to use to talk. Also, I realized how much I really sucked at Left 4 Dead...On the easiest difficulty. This is going to get interesting, especially since I've never played a game like this on a computer and I wish to play on Advanced mode (which is the step below the hardest difficulty.) I'll try to keep my language under control. :)**

**I won't be posting anything tomorrow, but I'll try to on Friday. I'm hoping to start the gameplay on Saturday. **

**Anyway...**

**Thank you and please enjoy!**

* * *

Epilogue

"And I now pronounce you husband and wife. Ellis, you may kiss the bride," a priest said and Ellis threw his hat into the air.

"Yeehaw!" he cried out before pulling Zoey into a kiss that made her giggle uncontrollably. The audience chuckled lightly and Ken smiled towards Mal and I.

"Just think," he said, "that could be you two, if Mal would just get the courage to drop on his knee."

Mal smiled and shook his head. "Nat and I have only known each other for a year now," he replied.

"And that's about ten months you two have been at it," Ken retorted with a smirk.

"Malachi is just afraid of commitment," Nick said, sliding over to join our conversation. A young girl, around eight years of age, slid over to join him as well. Nick pulled her into a one-armed hug and gently nudged Mal. "Come on, Man! Marriage isn't that bad! I mean, I've done it twice; and to the same person! Plus I got this little angel to keep me company." Nick kissed the side of his daughter's head and she smiled.

It was so hard to think that nearly a year ago, I was fighting zombies. Now, I was witnessing my good friends' marriage with my best friend gripping my hand protectively, kissing my cheek every so often and telling me how much he loved me.

I still remembered the moments I had with Shawn; Mal encouraged me to. I remembered our first outing...But I also remember our last parting. Shawn never regained his memory, like so many other recipients of the cure. Eventually, we had to send him off to live with some friends who were willing to take care of him until he could learn more about himself.

Kai became incredibly famous, much to Nick's displeasure. He often visited the other survivors in Georgia, while he met with Mal, Ken and I in San Francisco. When his ego got too big though, Ken reminded him of how they found him trying to survive in a dumpster. This usually shut him up for an hour at the most.

My parents and sister were also able to receive the cure and they stopped running from my decisions, like I had done for so long. When we were reunited, my father started going on and on about how stupid he had been and how when he turned, he couldn't stop thinking about my safety and how the last words we said to each other were farewells uttered in growls.

"Let's get this party started!" Ellis shouted and Zoey threw her head back and laughed. I smiled lightly and we moved out the doors to arrive at the reception.

-C.O.D-

After several drinks and an awful karaoke remake, Ellis decided to step down a bit and regain his composure. Meanwhile, the others were dancing and having a great time. Kai even managed to start a food fight near the edge of the party, which involved Mal, Ken, Nick, Coach, Louis, Rochelle, and Nick's daughter, Sami. I stood on the side-lines and watched, Zoey soon joining my side.

"Hey," she greeted and hiked up her wedding dress. "Ugh! I hate dresses."

"You look gorgeous, though," I said and she laughed lightly.

"I guess I do. Ellis can't keep his hands off me." She shook her head and smiled. "I love that man."

I smiled as well and looked towards Ellis. I could see why she liked him; he was cute, kind, and loyal. He definitely knew how to throw a party as well.

"So," Zoey said and smirked playfully. "How are you and the charming detective doing?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Mal? Oh, we're doing great. Our one-year anniversary is coming up...I think. I haven't been keeping track."

Zoey just smiled and placed her hand on my shoulder. "Well, I wish you two luck," she said and winked, before walking away to aid a vomiting Ellis.

An hour before the party closed, the DJ announced that the couple dances were about to begin. Seeing as Mal was covered in food, I didn't expect him to come swooping in the way he did. He led me to the circle and pulled me close, smiling. I couldn't help but share the same smile, seeing that icing was still caked in his left eyebrow and in parts of his hair.

"You having a good time, Special Agent Williams?" he asked quietly.

"Of course," I replied, matching his tone. "And you?"

"Well, the night is full of surprises," he admitted. "I'm sure something crazy is bound to happen soon. Maybe Kai will light something on fire."

I laughed at the sudden thought. Well, it certainly is possible.

When Zoey and Ellis finally waved goodbye and started to clean up themselves, Mal led me to his car, gripping my hand tightly and smiling as he did so. As soon as we arrived, he wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed me softly.

"I've been thinking about what Nick said," he whispered softly.

"Mal," I said, frowning suddenly. "He's just teasing...It's alright to be afraid of commitment."

"I know," Mal replied slowly. "but I've been afraid of letting a new woman in my life." He smiled. "Then I met you. Natara, you've filled the void that Sandra left behind. You're the reason I get up every morning and smile because I know how awesome my life is."

I smiled and hugged him tightly. "That's incredibly sweet," I giggled into his suit-jacket.

"And I was thinking..." Mal shrugged and smiled. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you by my side. I want you as my partner in crime when we deal with the little things like flying across the nation to visit old friends or even working together at the station."

"Mal Fallon," I said, grinning. "Are you proposing to me?"

Mal winked. "Yeah, I kind of am. I don't have the ring yet, I hope that's alright. I'll get one as soon as possible."

I laughed and pulled Mal into another kiss.

Suddenly, a cheer rang up from behind and we broke away from our passionate moment and faced the survivors.

"I'm guessing she said yes?" Zoey asked and Mal turned to me, raising an eyebrow.

"Do you..."

"Yes...Yes! A thousand times yes!"

And we continued our kiss, the survivors whooping and cheering in the background.

_I am home._


End file.
